Today`s Breeder - Purina Pro Club

®
Today’s Breeder
A Nestlé Purina Publication Dedicated to the Needs of Canine Enthusiasts
Issue 78
BREEDER PROFILES
Brillow German Wirehairs
Alpine Falls AmStaffs
Juniors Handle the Future
GI Tract in Health & Disease
International Canine Festival
We are so proud of our pups out
of Dual Grand Champion Poindexters
Snoop Dawg and Grand Champion
Shaker Hill Liz, owned by Jim Freeman of Beatrice, Neb. These 1-yearolds, raised on Purina Puppy Chow,
already are making their mark.
Sugar Creek Rocky placed second
and took 10th overall at the ACHA
(American Coon Hunters Association) Little World Championship in
March in Glasgow, Ky. Lauren Weaver,
who owns Rocky, also got High
Scoring Black & Tan. The rest of the
litter is doing well too.
Jim and I are proud to be platinum Pro Club members. Thank you,
Purina, for supporting our sport.
Max Poindexter
Poindexter Black & Tan Coonhounds
Bonne Terre, MO
Glenn and Sandy Meyer are shown with CH Kellykerry Peggy Sue of Aerie, who won Best
of Breed in May at the Irish Wolfhound Club of America National Specialty. Breeder-judge
Jacqueline Carswell is left.
The Aerie and Kellykerry Irish Wolfhound kennels had a great week at the
Irish Wolfhound National Specialty in
May at Purina Farms. Our good friends,
Glenn and Sandy Meyer of Manheim,
Pa., took Best of Breed with CH Kellykerry Peggy Sue of Aerie. They are
the breeders, owners and handlers.
We won Best of Winners and
Winners Dog with Riverlawn Exit of
Aerie, who earned his AKC Champion
title that week. Keeping it in the family,
“Exit’s” daughter, Hound Hill Vale of
An Honored Beagler
Pro Club member Ron Roth of Herculaneum, Mo., pictured at the Missouri State Championship in March in Troy, Mo., holds a plaque signifying his induction into the National Brace
Beagling Breeders Hall of Fame. Presented by the American Brace Beagling Association,
the award is given to those who have bred a minimum of 15 brace Field Champions. Roth,
who has finished more than 40 Top Spot brace Beagle Field Champions since 1956, says,
“The joy of raising a puppy and training it to become a Field Champion never grows old.”
Aerie, trotted right along and was
awarded Best Puppy in Show. We are
the breeders, owners and handlers of
both hounds.
We and the Meyers have fed Purina
Dog Chow for over 30 years, are members of Purina Pro Club and participate
in the Purina Parent Club Partnership Program.
Thank you Purina!
Doug Marx & Amy Benjamin
Aerie Irish Wolfhounds
Landenberg, PA
We enjoy hearing from our Pro Club members about their dogs. Please send your
letters and photos to: Today’s Breeder, c/o Editor, Nestlé Purina PetCare Company,
2T Checkerboard Square, St. Louis, MO 63164 or via e-mail at today’sbreeder@purina.
com. Today’s Breeder retains the right to edit and publish letters, including names
and addresses, and photos, to a worldwide audience.
Today’s Breeder Advisory Board
Steve Crimmins, Vice President
of Marketing, Pet Foods
Candy Caciolo, Portfolio Director, Specialty, Breeder & Pet Acquisition
Ann Viklund, Director, Breeder-Enthusiast,
Conformation, Sporting and Breeder Marketing, and Breeder, Labrador Retrievers and
Norwich Terriers
Michael Allway, Manager, Breeder-Enthusiast Services, and Breeder, Pembroke
Welsh Corgis, Akitas, Pointers and Tibetan
Terriers
Brock Fitzgerald, Director, Purina Farms
and the Purina Event Center
Gianna DeiSanti, Senior Brand Manager,
Breeder-Enthusiast Group
Lisa Hoffman, Communications Manager,
Breeder-Enthusiast Group
Bob West, Director, Sporting,
Breeder-Enthusiast Group
Steve Remspecher, Director of Marketing,
Sporting, Breeder-Enthusiast Group, and
Breeder, German Shorthaired Pointers
Rod L. Carter, Area Manager, Sporting Group,
and Breeder, Beagles, Boston Terriers and
Yorkshire Terriers
I S S U E
7 8
Diana Allen, Field Promotions Representative, and Breeder, American Eskimo Dogs
Dean Reinke, Area Manager, Sporting Group,
and Breeder, English Springer Spaniels
Peggy Schilling, Field Promotions Representative, and Breeder, Great Danes
Connie Wagner, Senior Manager, Conformation, and Breeder, Dalmatians
Today’s Breeder is produced and published
by Nestlé Purina Public Relations.
Kaite Flamm, Manager, Purina Event Center
Deborah Greco, D.V.M., DACVIM,
Senior Research Scientist, and Breeder,
Standard Poodles
2
Pat Lamantia, Area Manager, Sporting Group,
and Breeder, German Wirehaired Pointers
Robert Ekle, Area Manager, Plains, and
Breeder, Dalmatians
Carol Grossman, Area Manager, West,
and Breeder, Great Danes, Rottweilers
and Dachshunds
Keith Schopp, Vice President, Public Relations
Barbara Fawver, Manager, Pet Influential
Communications, Editor, Today’s Breeder
Magazine, and Breeder, Brace Beagles
Ann Balotti, Area Manager, Midwest
Adam Williams, Senior Communications
Specialist, Pet Influential Communications
Marci Sale, Area Manager, East, and
Breeder, Labrador Retrievers
Sarah Meyer and Angela He, Contributing
Writers, Today’s Breeder Magazine
Today’s Breeder articles may be reprinted
provided the following guidelines are used:
That the article be used in its entirety. If
the entire article is not desired, submit in
writing what you plan to use; that it be
used in a positive manner; that credit be
given to Today’s Breeder as the article’s
source. The credit should be as follows:
Used with permission from Today’s
Breeder, Nestlé Purina PetCare Company.
®
PUR
I Breeder
NA
Today’s
A Nestlé Purina Publication Dedicated to the Needs of Canine Enthusiasts
If you have moved or changed your name,
please let us know by calling 1-877-7762582 or write us at: Purina Pro Club, 1400
South Highway Drive, Fenton MO 63099.
4Professional
PA R T N E R S H I P I N PA R A D I S E
trainer Jim West of Wild West Kennels
ANY QUESTIONS?
When you have questions about Purina
Pro Club rebates or Starter Kits, please
call 1-877-776-2582 between 7 a.m. and
5 p.m. CST Monday through Friday (holidays excluded).
and Rhonda Haukoos of Brillow German Wirehaired Pointers met at a field trial. He started
training some of her dogs, and eventually they
started dating. Today, on 300 acres in bird-dog
paradise in southwestern Iowa, the couple works
together training dogs for horseback field trials.
Today’s Breeder is not responsible for unsolicited submissions, manuscripts, photographs, and other submitted material.
Submissions will not be returned. Submission constitutes permission for Today’s
Breeder, at its sole discretion, to use the
submitted materials, in whole or in part,
without compensation. For reasons of
space and editorial content, Today’s
Breeder reserves the right to delete or alter
any solicited or unsolicited information, or
part of, that is submitted or received for consideration for inclusion in this publication.
Today’s Breeder is sent as a courtesy to members of the Purina Pro Club. Extra copies
are available for $2.95 each. Make your
check or money order payable to Today’s
Breeder and send to: Today’s Breeder, c/o
Editor, Nestlé Purina PetCare Company, 2T
Checkerboard Square, St. Louis, MO 63164.
Trademarks owned by Société des Produits
Nestlé S.A.,Vevey, Switzerland.
© 2012 Nestlé Purina PetCare Company
12
Issue 78
12
HANDLING THE FUTURE
Shaped by their experiences, junior handlers gain
far more than practical knowledge and skills to
succeed at dog shows and field trials. Driven by
their love for dogs and guided by mentors, they
learn lifelong lessons that build self-confidence,
teach good sportsmanship and promote timemanagement skills.
20
THE GUT’S ROLE IN DISEASE
The key role the gastrointestinal tract plays in
health and disease was the focus of the recent
Nestlé Purina Companion Animal Nutrition (CAN)
Summit. Long-held beliefs about the mechanics
of disease processes are changing as scientists
learn more about how the GI tract functions as a
physical barrier against the outside world.
22
22
THE FIRE OF ALPINE FALLS
Having finished 16 Champions since breeding their first litter together in 2005, Alpine Falls
AmStaff breeders Ed and Karen Thomason are fueled by a desire to produce top-winning dogs.
Their BIS/BISS GCH Alpine’s Highway, the No. 1 AmStaff since 2010, is a fiery blend who
thrives on intense competition and the exuberance of winning.
Regular Departments
2 The Readers’ Page
10 Spotlight
28 From the Field
30 Purina Farms
32 News to Use
34 Breed Snapshot
36 Circle of Champions
On Our Cover
FC Brillows Big Wild Western (“Wiley”) is a 2-year-old male German Wirehaired Pointer
bred by Rhonda Haukoos and handled by Jim West, both of Randolph, Iowa, and owned by
Todd Tuls of Shelby, Neb. Cover photo by Adam Williams. See story on page 4.
T O D A Y ’ S
B R E E D E R
3
BREEDER PROFILE
STORY
AND
PHOTOS BY ADAM WILLIAMS
hile the sun casts fresh shadows across morning in southwestern
Iowa, professional bird dog trainer and handler Jim West of Wild
West Kennels stops his pickup next to an alfalfa field and sizable
pond. Jim takes a last sip of coffee before setting his mug atop the
dash, and then steps out to release dogs.
He and Rhonda Haukoos of Brillow German
Wirehaired Pointers only had to drive from across
the gravel road, where they make their home near
Randolph, Iowa, during the spring and fall months.
Jim and Rhonda live on 300 acres that offer plentiful
bird dog training opportunities with fence rows, creeks,
tree lines and crops. Their land is farmed by cordial
neighbors, freeing Jim and Rhonda to focus on training
bird dogs for field trials.
FC Brillows Big Wild Western
So, why did the trainers cross the
(“Wiley”), a German Wireroad? The answer is as simple as the
haired Pointer
well-trod query about the road-crossing chicken: to get to the other side of bird-dogging paradise.
Rhonda and Jim’s neighbors allow them access to thousands
more acres for unimpeded dog work.
“I hate to be confined,” Jim says. “We have only four neighbors for miles and miles. They allow us to do whatever we need.
We really do live in a dog trainer’s paradise.”
Professional handler Jim West of Wild West Kennels and NAFC/DC/AFC/GCH Ariel’s
Justa Gotta Go Now (“Louie”), the first Dual Grand Champion German Wirehair,
look across an alfalfa field as the sun rises over Randolph, Iowa.
4
I S S U E
7 8
The fresh-air landscape that flows in all directions
to a broad horizon lies beneath an equally gaping
yawn of sky. Familiar though it is to Rhonda, it
still inspires an of-the-moment description. “This
is our castle in the clouds,” she says.
One by one, Jim releases four German Wirehairs
and three German Shorthairs into a neighbor’s thick,
green alfalfa field. He handles the top six Open Gun
Dogs ranked by the German Wirehaired Pointer
Club of America (GWPCA).
Jim started competing in horseback trials as an
amateur handler in 1996. He worked with a variety
of bird dog breeds, including German Shorthaired
Pointers, Brittanys and Vizslas. Of 27 dogs in his
kennel, there is one Vizsla, and the rest are divided
equally between shorthairs and wirehairs. It’s more
than Jim had dreamed of when he began.
“It was an accident that I turned pro,” he says.
“People started paying me to handle their dogs,
and I was getting to do something I enjoyed. I’ve
been training and handling professionally since
the fall of 1999.”
His pastime was more compelling than how he
was making his living in the mid- to late-1990s.
Twelve years into the family catering business — Jim
had taken over as an 18-year-old in Omaha, Neb.
— he had had enough. “It was way too stressful,”
Jim says, while sitting at their dining table after this
day’s training is done. “It was way too much work.”
Rhonda laughs. “Because training dogs isn’t
stressful and a lot of work?” Jim smiles.
That familiar give-and-take threads through
Jim and Rhonda’s relationship of more than 10
years. They have been working together full time
training and competing with dogs since Rhonda
was laid off last year from her job in the printing
department of a shoe company. They split time
among homes and training grounds in Randolph,
summer in Dunning, Neb., and winter in Jackson,
Ga., and Masaryktown, Fla.
Rhonda also breeds a litter of German Wirehaired
Pointers every year or two. She raises and trains
puppies, and scouts for Jim during field trials. In
trials, however, Jim focuses on clients’ dogs, not the
ones Rhonda breeds.
Jim walks toward a field as FC
Jay-Mar’s How Do You Like Me
Now (“G-man”), FC/AFC I’m Maddie
(“Maddie”), and Louie (partly
hidden) race to find birds.
T O D A Y ’ S
B R E E D E R
5
BREEDER PROFILE
Standing on point are German
Shorthaired and Wirehaired
Pointers, front row, from left,
Wiley and “Chloe,” and back
row, Maddie, Louie, “DeDe,”
“Sport,” and G-man.
“I don’t want anyone to perceive her breeding
as a conflict of interest,” he says. “We try to win
with the dogs that come to me. I don’t compete
against those who pay me to handle their dogs.”
Eyes on the Present
Breeder Rhonda Haukoos of
Brillow German Wirehaired
Pointers cleans the kennels.
6
I S S U E
7 8
Jim grew up in Council Bluffs, Iowa, across the
border from Omaha. He became interested in dogs
as a 12-year-old whose family lived down the road
from an amateur handler, D.D. Frenzen. “‘Dee’
had Brittanys,” says Jim. “He trained a National
Champion, NFC Gold Tone Duke, and a Futurity
winner. I enjoyed learning about dog training from
him. Dee became a grandfather figure to me.”
Rhonda is from Albert Lea, Minn. Soon after she
graduated from the University of Minnesota-Waseca
in 1989, she got her first purebred puppy, a German
Wirehaired Pointer, from Liz Barrett of Spring Valley,
Minn. Rhonda trained and handled DC/AFC Soo
Line’s Allied Freighter. Mike Edwards of Dassel,
Minn., would breed to “Ansel,” and Rhonda got
CH Ansel’s Brillow Ally as a stud-fee puppy. “Ally”
would become Rhonda’s foundation bitch and
produce three litters, starting in 2000, including
CH Brillow’s Li’l Snippet and Brillow’s Abigail.
“With Ansel I got my first exposure to field trials,”
says Rhonda. “The sport combines horses and dogs.
I couldn’t think of anything better.”
Rhonda and Jim met in 1997 at a field trial. They
became friends, and Jim started training some of
Rhonda’s dogs, including Ally. Rhonda and Jim
started dating in 2001, and Rhonda eventually
moved to Iowa, a central location that put her
within reach of more field trials. Since that time,
they’ve trained and trialed together, and Rhonda
has continued breeding Brillow German Wirehaired Pointers.
“The name Brillow came from Ansel,” she says.
“He had such a phenomenal coat, and people would
pet him and comment on his coat being like a
Brillo pad. That’s a good characteristic for a wirehair to have. The coat should be dense, harsh and
protective with an undercoat that helps insulate
the dog from hot, cold and wet conditions. I
added the ‘W’ to Brillow, so there’s no confusion
with the brand name.”
Jim’s first big-winning dog was NFC/FC Showtime’s Rollin’ Thunder. “‘Ricky’ was a true all-age
dog,” Jim says. “He would run a mile out, and
you’d find him standing point on birds. He’d run
that big but never wanted to leave my side, either.
He was incredibly loyal and willing to please.
“After I retired Ricky, he laid on my couch for a
while. I started to feel bad for him. I took him out
of retirement in 2009, when he was 12 years old, and
ran him in a major one-hour stake: the German
Shorthaired Pointer Club of America North Central
Sectional Classic in Branched Oak, Neb. He came
in third. It was all about heart.”
Jim’s first nationally ranked German Shorthair
was FC/AFC West in Kojac’s Gina in 1999. She was
No. 1 in National German Shorthaired Pointer Association rankings, while another bitch Jim owned and
handled, FC/AFC Kojac’s Peggy, was No. 3. With
those dogs and Ansel, Jim and Rhonda won 33
consecutive shooting dog trials.
Like many professional handlers Jim doesn’t
focus too much on tallying or touting his successes.
He doesn’t want to tempt bad fortune with selfjinxing swagger. He also prefers to look to the future
and let past stars of the kennel rest in peace.
“Nothing will compare to your first big-winning
dog,” he says. “If I’m looking for another dog to be
just like Ricky, it’ll never happen. It’s my job to
make the dogs I have now great. Time moves on.”
As Jim says this, part of the present walks into
the room: No. 2-ranked NAFC/DC/AFC/GCH
Ariel’s Justa Gotta Go Now (“Louie”), who is
owned by Bernee Brawn of New Hope, Penn., and
MaryPat Ezzo, D.V.M., of Richboro, Penn.
“People don’t believe I let a dog I don’t own stay
in our house, but there’s proof,” he says. “Louie
just came out of the bedroom.”
Peaks & Valleys
Rhonda owns one dog in the Wild West kennel:
NFC/FC Brillow’s Wild West Show (“Miss Kitty”),
the first National Champion wirehair for the Brillow
breeding program in 2009. Miss Kitty is the No. 6
German Wirehaired Pointer, having run in limited
trials. Rhonda co-owns three German Wirehairs:
Brillow’s Upland Ally (“Allie”), with Christian Fisher
of Orange City, Iowa; Ebbtide’s Justa Gotta Believe
(“LuCee”), with Brawn and Garnett Persinger of
Conneautville, Penn.; and Uodibar’s Freebee, with
Claire and Kelly Wisch of Brunswick, Md.
“She also is a professional trainer,” says Jim.
“She does a lot of the obedience work and handles
juvenile dogs.”
Rhonda juggles puppy raising, kennel maintenance and organizational responsibilities for the
A 4-week-old wirehair puppy sired
by NAFC/DC/AFC/GCH Ariel’s
Justa Gotta Go Now (“Louie”)
out of NFC/FC Brillow Wild West
Show (“Miss Kitty”) romps in
Jim and Rhonda’s front yard.
T O D A Y ’ S
B R E E D E R
7
BREEDER PROFILE
Jim uses a pond on a neighbor’s
farm to train dogs, like Louie, to
retrieve in water. German Wirehairs must attain four points in
retrieving competitions and pass
water tests to earn Field Champion titles.
8
I S S U E
7 8
Brillow and Wild West kennels. There are 4-weekold puppies sired by Louie out of Miss Kitty in the
laundry room-turned-whelping room. A 10-weekold puppy sired by FC Brillows Big Wild Western
(“Wiley”) bounds around a pen with Miss Kitty, the
puppy’s granddam, outside the back door. Rhonda
bred Wiley, the No. 5 German Wirehair who is
handled by Jim and owned by Todd Tuls of Shelby,
Neb. Sired by Brillows Jackson Flyer, Wiley is out
of Miss Kitty.
Due to Jim’s caution about misperceptions that
his interests conflict with his clients’, Wiley repre-
Jim has handled seven dogs to National Championship wins, totaling 14 first-places and six RunnerUps. He credits Dee’s influence more than 25 years
ago with shaping his training philosophy.
“Dee taught me how a dog learns,” Jim says.
“When I was 14 years old, I was a hot-headed little
kid. I once picked up a dog that wasn’t doing what
I wanted and started to shake him. Dee came up
and grabbed me.
“Then, Dee started asking me questions. ‘What’s
your birthdate? What are your parents’ names?
What’s your phone number?’ I couldn’t answer. I
sents an infrequent opportunity in which Rhonda’s
breeding and Jim’s skills mingle. The result has
been success that started early with Wiley.
Rhonda handled the now 2-year-old Wiley to
several puppy stakes wins and a 2011 GWPCA
National Championship qualification. Then, Jim
handled Wiley to win the National Derby Classic
and take third place in the Field Futurity and RunnerUp in the one-hour National Championship in
Ionia, Mich. With Wiley’s littermate, “Freebee,” Jim
won the Field Futurity and went Runner-Up in the
Derby Classic. He finished Wiley’s Field Championship the next week in Branched Oak, Neb., at
20 months of age.
couldn’t think of anything. Dee said, ‘It’s the same
way for dogs. They want to please you.’”
Jim, who occasionally gives training seminars,
has a string of anecdotes and metaphors that easily
relate his training philosophy. Rhonda knows them
by heart, and as Jim tells one or another, she sits
patiently, occasionally nodding in agreement.
“Training is simple,” she says. “People make it
complicated.”
“Dog training requires a teacher, not a prison
guard,” says Jim. “I believe dogs need correction,
but it should be done subtly.”
“By being calm, we can show dogs the right ways
to perform until they get it right,” Rhonda adds.
Rhonda feeds DeDe (Sure Shot’s Double
Dare). Brillow and Wild West dogs are
fed Purina Pro Plan Performance Formula.
“They will get it right, in
time. It takes patience.”
“Training and competing
with dogs is a roller coaster
ride,” Jim says. “There are
peaks and valleys. That’s just
how it is.”
Good breeding aids a dog’s
potential, of course, and creates greater prospects
for more peaks than valleys. Many top German
Wirehair breeders send dogs to Jim to have strengths
and weaknesses identified, and some have Jim train
the best prospects.
For Rhonda, breeding Brillow German Wirehairs
is about working toward the ultimate bird dog and
proving the dogs in trials. “Most of our dogs go to
hunters,” she says, “but we believe field trials prove
dogs’ abilities and help to produce better hunting
dogs. The emphasis is to produce a dog with a
properly dense, coarse, water-repellant coat, one with
good swimming abilities, even-keeled temperament
and a strong retrieving drive.”
Some German Wirehaired Pointer trials have a
retrieving component. For example, when Jim
handled 2XNGDC 2XCH FC/AFC Slicks’ Cuttin’
Wild (“Joker”) to two AKC Pointing Breed Gun
Dog National Championship wins in 2010, one required retrieving.
While pointers do not need to demonstrate retrieving abilities to earn a Field Champion title, some
bird dog breeds, including German Wirehairs and
Weimaraners, must attain four points in retrieving
competition and pass water tests. That gives the pond
Jim parks his truck by in the neighbor’s alfalfa field
special value in the Wild West training paradise.
After collecting the other dogs from the alfalfa
field, Jim takes Wiley to the pond’s edge and
kneels next to him beneath the only tree. He tosses
an orange training bumper and lets Wiley do what
comes naturally — race to leap into a splash landing
and swim to retrieve the dummy.
Wiley’s drive and birdy enthusiasm are what
Rhonda looks for when breeding, but given the
relatively small gene pool of German Wirehairs
compared to, say, pointers, it’s especially necessary
to reach beyond one’s kennel for breeding partners.
BREEDER PROFILE
Refining Priorities
As Wild West and Brillow have evolved, with Jim
and Rhonda’s dreams being achieved, they have
learned to refine priorities.
“My parents are getting older,” Jim says, “and
I have two grandchildren, Aiesha and Jaden. I try
not to be gone as much. That’s another benefit of
working more with German Wirehaired Pointers.
There aren’t as many championships as with other
breeds. We travel less now.”
Less is relative. Jim and Rhonda put 60,000 miles
a year on their pickup and horse trailer, which is
designed to hold as many as 30 dogs, five horses,
a four-wheeler, and miscellaneous needs, and on
top of the trailer, as many square bales of hay as
necessary to feed the horses. Living quarters are
built into the front third of the 32-foot-long trailer.
Jim doesn’t know when, but the seed is planted
in his mind that there will come a day when he will
slow down and raise puppies. That may be many
years away. He bred a litter of German Shorthair
pups once. It’s hard work, but Jim has a way of
closing a life chapter on hard work only to open a
new one of … hard work. Rhonda will be there,
too, ready to impart expertise to Jim, as necessary,
like he started doing for her 15 years ago with dog
training and handling.
Wild West and Brillow are a partnership in paradise. ■
While Jim brushes one of their
horses, Rhonda grabs a saddle
from the customized 32-footlong trailer that includes space
for 30 dogs, five horses, a fourwheeler and living quarters for
the couple.
T O D A Y ’ S
B R E E D E R
9
“Ludo,” left, a 2-year-old
Shetland Sheepdog, takes
the lead while running with
“Thomas,” an 8-year-old.
SPOTLIGHT
O ZARK C REST ’ S
Silver Lining
W
10
I S S U E
7 8
ith golden sunlight bathing their
silky sable-and-white coats, two
spirited Shetland Sheepdogs race
across the fenced front yard of
Paul and Karen Hannah’s picturesque farmhouse in
Nixa, Mo. Beaming proudly, the Hannahs watch the
dogs’ stunning display of grace and agility. These
playful Shelties represent the past and the future
of their combined 92 years breeding, owning and
handling the breed.
Joyously seizing the object of their pursuit, a
red rubber ball nearly half his height, CAN CH/
AM GCH GrandGables Jolie Victor Ludorum is the
Hannahs’ newest Special. Bred by Leslie Muhlhahn
of Ithaca, N.Y., the 2-year-old, called “Ludo,”
earned his Canadian conformation championship
with his prior owners, Guy Jeavons and Mark
McMillan of Moffat, Ontario, before the Hannahs
brought him home in April 2011. Since debuting
with Paul this past January, Ludo has earned his
American Kennel Club (AKC) championship plus
three Herding Group Firsts from 20 Group placements and 34 Bests of Breed. The Hannahs are
confident the future is bright for Ludo. They know
what it takes to succeed.
The top breed-winning Sheltie of all time, INTL/
WLD/MEX/COA CH/AM GCH Kylene Eden
The Dragonslayer, HIC, 5CC, who the Hannahs
retired in December, trots merrily alongside Ludo
as he carries the ball to the shade of a towering oak
tree. The winner of 553 Bests of Breed, 130 Group
Firsts, 20 Bests in Show and 26 Bests in Specialty Show,
8-year-old “Thomas” is as handsome and proud
today as when he was winning show after show.
“Thomas is an incredible companion and mentor
to Ludo,” Paul says. “We take Thomas ringside when
SPOTLIGHT
we watch Groups, and he exhibits for Ludo the outstanding confidence that made him so successful.”
Given to the Hannahs in 2005 by his breeder,
the late Kathy Dziegiel of Chiefland, Fla., Thomas
took Second Best in Show from more than 5,500
dogs at the 2007 World Dog Show in Mexico City.
The next year he was the No. 1 Sheltie in all systems,
and in 2011 he was No. 1 in all-breed rankings.
Thomas’ record-breaking career followed AM/
CAN/INTL CH Ozark Crest Fortune In Gold, 5CC,
OA, OAJ, a male Sheltie owned by the Hannahs
who earned 526 Bests of Breed and held the breed
record from 2005 to 2011. “Dusty,” who passed away
in 2010, also was an accomplished agility competitor.
His greatest achievement, however, was bringing
Paul and Karen together.
Paul found his calling in dogs in the 1960s through
his first wife, Susie, an avid obedience competitor
and daughter of Ozark Crest Great Dane breeders
Frank and Betty Sundstrom. Paul finished almost
30 Great Danes from 1965 to 1973. Then, he and Susie
bought their first Sheltie for obedience, and the two
began their own breeding program.
Meanwhile, Karen, a counselor and physical
education teacher in Los Angeles, was making a
reputation for herself as the owner-handler of five
Best in Show winning Shelties. In 1996, Karen called
Paul and Susie after seeing one of their Ozark Crest
Shelties at a dog show and expressed interest in owning one of their dogs. Shortly afterward, she and
her husband, Gene Dickinson, became Dusty’s coowners and Paul and Susie’s good friends.
Sadly, Paul lost Susie to lung cancer in 2000,
just eight months after Dickinson suffered a heart
attack and passed away. Paul and Karen found the
silver lining in the tragedies as their friendship blossomed into love. Married in 2002, they feel fortunate to share their greatest passion.
As Paul and Karen exchange compliments and opinions on who is more
responsible for their success, it is clear
each brings a wealth of knowledge,
skill and experience to Ozark Crest.
Attending about 130 shows a year,
the Hannahs show one or two of their
own dogs and sometimes a few class
dogs for clients. Paul handles the dogs,
and Karen focuses on their daily needs,
such as grooming and socialization.
“It is the weeks and months before a
show that make a dog look and perform the way it
does,” Paul says. “Karen’s attention to detail ensures
our dogs look and feel their best.”
“Paul’s talent and professionalism as a handler
also have contributed to our dogs’ accomplishments
in the ring,” Karen adds.
Committed to providing optimal nutrition for
the dogs in their care, the Hannahs feed Purina Pro
Plan Performance Formula to their Shelties and to
the dogs at their boarding kennel. “Pro Plan gives
our dogs clean, healthy coats and the ability to
maintain a healthy weight and an active lifestyle,”
Karen says.
The Hannahs own two female Shelties. Two-yearold Millcreeks Good Golly Ms Molly’s at Ozark Crest
(“Molly”) is one major shy of her championship,
and 3-year-old Blu Valley Oh So Fine of Ozark Crest
(“Sophie”) will soon be bred to Ludo. The Hannahs
breed one or two litters a year.
“We want dogs that are not only good show
prospects but also wonderful companions,” Paul says.
Paul and Karen attribute the charismatic attitudes
of their dogs to the care and attention they receive
living in their home. “Our dogs are our family and
our friends,” Karen says. “They’re our everything.” ■
Paul and Karen Hannah walk
proudly with Thomas, left, the
top breed-winning Sheltie of all
time, and Ludo, the winner of
34 Bests of Breed since January.
Highlights of wins are, from left:
Best of Breed with Ludo at the
Greater Daytona Dog Fanciers
Association Dog Show; Group First
with Thomas at the Oklahoma City
Kennel Club Dog Show; and Best
Veteran Dog with “Dusty” at the
American Shetland Sheepdog Club
National Specialty.
T O D A Y ’ S
B R E E D E R
11
12
I S S U E
7 8
Handling the
FUTURE
BY SARAH MEYER
Devoted to their dogs, thrilled by competition and eager to learn,
junior handlers gain hands-on education about what it takes
to succeed at conformation shows and field trials. The knowledge
and skills they cultivate through junior handler programs help to
shape their future. Today’s Breeder is pleased to feature these
young handlers who represent the next generation of the dog fancy.
Left: Carolyn Kellerman cuddles
with My Buddy It Iz What It Iz
(“Izzy”), a Golden Retriever.
I
n a spacious living room, Carolyn Kellerman of Lawtons, N.Y., began
honing her dog handling skills as a 4-year-old, practicing with a stuffed
dog and a spare lead.
Inspired as she watched professional handler Jolene Bezinger, also of
Lawtons, train her mother’s Labrador Retriever, CH Ravenhill’s Sir Winston,
CGC, Carolyn began playing “dog show” in the living room. “‘Winston’ was
my family’s third Labrador, but the first to be
trained for dog shows,” says Carolyn, 13, a freshman this fall at North Collins High School. “I
admired the relationship and control Jolene
developed with him and was intrigued by the
dog show world.”
Over the next two years, Carolyn tagged along
to dog shows with her mother, Heidi Kellerman.
At 6 years old, she graduated from the living room
to the show ring, where she began exhibiting her
mother’s black Labradors in class competition.
Three years later, Carolyn became eligible to participate in the American Kennel Club (AKC)
Junior Showmanship program, which she attributes to helping her grow as
a handler.
“Judges select a Best Junior at each event and give valuable critiques that identify what you are doing well and what you need to improve,” Carolyn says. “I am
learning a lot about handling and am becoming more in tune with my dogs.”
Carolyn has won more than 20 Best Junior awards in her four years in the
AKC Junior Showmanship program. She also captured Best Junior at the
Carolyn walks Labrador Retrievers,
Larkspur’s Beatrice (“Beatrice”),
left, and Wiscoy’s Northern
Lights Over Harbor Run (“Rory”).
T O D A Y ’ S
B R E E D E R
13
Labrador Club of the Potomac Specialty in 2011 with CH Wiscoy’s
Robin, a black Labrador owned by Jill Ickowski of Eden, N.Y.
Among her honors in open competition, Carolyn won an
Award of Merit at this year’s Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show
with GCH Pucketts Super Charged, a black Labrador owned by
Jen Hamon of Fonda, N.Y. In 2010, she captured back-to-back
Bests in Specialty Show at the Mid-Jersey Labrador Retriever Club
Specialty with CH Waifin’s Fly Cabot to Torngat, becoming the
youngest handler to win both shows.
Carolyn’s love for dogs has turned into a mother-daughter
bonding activity. “Working with the dogs and traveling to shows
together gives us opportunities to talk and hang out,” Carolyn
says. “My mom is incredibly supportive too. I appreciate her
encouragement and her pride whether I win or lose.”
At home, Carolyn plays a central role in caring for her mother’s
Harbor Run Labrador and Golden Retrievers, which has contributed to making her a well-rounded handler. “Carolyn is right
there with me in the whelping box when puppies are born,” says
her mother, Heidi. “She feeds, exercises and trains the dogs, gives
them medicine, and takes them to obedience and conformation
classes. She puts their care and love first. Winning is a bonus.”
As an assistant for handlers Rusty and Jennifer Howard of
Huntsville, Ala., and Tim Terella of Erie, Pa., Carolyn has had the
opportunity to observe and learn from
professionals. “The Howards taught
me the art of presenting a dog and that
you lose more times than you win, but
you always leave with the same great
dog you brought,” she says. “Tim
taught me how to condition Working dogs and build their confidence
in the ring.”
Competing with the Pros
For 12-year-old Vizsla handler
Andrew Fidler of Oak Grove, Mo., field
trials are a family activity that has
taken root in his plans for the future.
When Andrew’s parents, Brian and
Left: Andrew Fidler trains May-C,
Stephanie Fidler, acquired a Vizsla
a Vizsla, in a field near his home.
Inset photo: Andrew hugs May-C. five years ago, they got involved in
AKC hunting tests and then horseback field trials.
The Fidlers bought their second Vizsla 18 months later, and in
2010, they bred their first litter, from which Andrew was given
a female called May-C. After competing in one field trial with
May-C, Andrew fell for the sport, too.
14
I S S U E
7 8
The Fidlers compete at two national events and a handful of
weekend field trials each year. Andrew and his father handle
the dogs, while his mother serves as a field marshall, following
the dogs on horseback to ensure they stay on track and are not
missed on point. His 9-year-old sister, Kenzy, rides with the
gallery on horseback.
“We enjoy going to field trials as a family,” says Andrew’s father,
Brian. “You invest so much time, energy and resources, it is nice
to share the experience.”
Last fall, Andrew handled May-C to fourth place in Open
Derby and third place in Open Puppy at his first trial held at
the Ozark German Shorthaired Pointer Club in Grovespring,
Mo. May-C also was the 2011 National Vizsla Association
(NVA) National Quail Derby Classic winner and the Runner-Up
Champion at the NVA National Derby Classic.
Because few youth compete in the sport and local Vizsla clubs
do not offer youth programs, Andrew competes with amateur
and professional adults. Usually the youngest participant, he
benefits from the adult competitors who offer encouragement
and advice. Professional trainer and Purina Field Consultant
Gailen Cooper, also of Oak Grove, has been especially helpful,
teaching Andrew how to train May-C and offering guidance.
“Gailen is an incredible mentor,” says Andrew, an
eighth-grader this fall at Oak Grove Middle School. “My
parents gave me a strong foundation in the sport, and then
Gailen helped me put that knowledge into action and
master more advanced techniques. It is because of him
that I learned how to properly handle a dog and how to
train a dog to a high level of performance. You want your
dog to point with intensity and style. Gailen also helped
me to realize the depth of the relationship required to
have success with a dog.”
Andrew’s passion for Vizslas and field trials is evident.
“I am interested in becoming a professional trainer and
handler one day,” he says. “I absolutely love this sport.”
Outgrowing the Trophy Case
Nineteen-year-old Melinda Hicks of Camden, W.Va., found
her first mentor in Southfork River Treeing Walker Coonhound
breeder Megan Rimel of Rome, Ohio. “Megan sold me my first
show-quality Coonhound and taught me the basics of the sport,
including how to stack Coonhounds on a bench, how to gait
them around the ring, and how to manage their weight and conditioning,” says Melinda. “She also taught me about the Walker
standard and how to evaluate a dog’s conformation.”
The daughter of an avid hunter, Melinda grew up pleasure
Melinda Hicks stacks CH ‘PR’ West Fork River Gossip Girl
(“Blaire”), a Treeing Walker Coonhound surrounded by
trophies Melinda won. Inset photo: Melinda practices
gaiting with GRCH/GCH ‘PR’ Midnight Troubles Back In
Town (“Roxy”), a Treeing Walker Coonhound.
hunting and watching her father, Bernard
Hicks, bring trophies home from local
nite hunts and place them in the trophy
case. When she was 14, Melinda discovered an interest in bench
shows while attending one with her father. A few weeks later,
she was competing with one of her family’s hunting Coonhounds
and looking for a show dog.
“Now, the whole house is a trophy case,” Bernard says.
“Melinda’s focus, determination and understanding of the breed
have made her enormously successful.”
Over the past five years, Melinda has competed in AKC conformation shows and United Kennel Club (UKC) bench shows.
She is an alumna of the AKC Junior Showmanship program and
T O D A Y ’ S
B R E E D E R
15
UKC youth bench shows. “Youth events are a great opportunity
to learn and improve,” Melinda says.
The winner of the AKC Junior Handler Competition and a
$1,000 scholarship in 2009, Melinda went on to win the 2010
UKC Youth Nationals and capture Best Junior World Show
Champion at the 2011 AKC World with West Fork River Rumor
Has It (“Rumor”), a Treeing Walker Coonhound bred by Rimel.
Among her achievements in open competition, Melinda won
Best Grand Champion Female in Show at the 2009 AKC National
Coonhound Championship with GCH West Fork River Chyanne,
her first Coonhound bred by Rimel. Last year, she captured Best
of Opposite Sex at the UKC World Bench Show and Champion
Female at Autumn Oaks with GRCH/GCH Midnight Trouble’s
Back in Town (“Roxy”), who she bought from the late Jim Hogan
of Salix, Pa. Roxy also won the bench show at the inaugural Purina
National Championship, an invitational event in which dogs qualify
by winning a division at a Purina Points Series state championship.
“Jim helped me with Roxy’s training and was a great role model,”
Melinda says. “That made winning with Roxy extra special.”
Melinda’s love for dogs extends beyond the trophy case. Though
she stays busy traveling to UKC bench shows with three Treeing
Walker Coonhounds, Melinda is preparing to breed her first litter.
This fall, she will begin her sophomore year at Fairmont (W.Va.)
State University, where she is a veterinary technician student.
“I’ve aspired to be involved with veterinary medicine my whole
life,” she says. “I want to dedicate my future to helping animals.”
An Early Start Training Dogs
Seventeen-year-old Connor Wharton of Altoona, Pa., enjoys
reaping knowledge from the adults who participate in English
Springer Spaniel field trials. “Everyone has a lot of information
to share,” says Connor, who will be a senior this fall at Bishop
Guilfoyle Catholic High School.
Connor followed his father, Greg Wharton, and older brother,
Spencer Wharton, into English Springer Spaniel field trials as a
13-year-old. His uncle, Bob Montler, and cousin, Josh Montler,
also are veterans in the sport.
Before he started competing in
field trials, Connor had almost a
decade’s worth of experience training and competing in hunting tests
with his family’s dogs. From age
5, he helped simulate trials on his
uncle’s farm and duplicate the dis-
Connor Wharton signals to AFC
Pinecroft’s Princess Peyton, an
English Springer Spaniel. Inset
photo: Connor sits with “Peyton.”
16
I S S U E
7 8
Amy Beard handles GCH Edelweiss Dirty Sexy Money (“Lexee”), a Chinese Crested, at a dog show at the Purina Event Center in
Gray Summit, Mo. Inset photo: Amy holds Lexee, who she bred, owns and handles.
tractions dogs might encounter in the field. He learned how to
plant birds and exercise dogs with an all-terrain vehicle. He also
began to develop an ability to identify the needs of individual dogs
and design drills and training techniques well-suited for each.
Mentors who have helped shape Connor’s learning include
professional trainer Marty Knibbs of Regina, Saskatchewan,
Canada, and Purina Area Manager and professional trainer Dean
Reinke of Elkhorn, Wis. “Interactions with professionals who are
highly regarded in the game really help young handlers improve,”
his father, Greg, explains.
Knibbs, a family friend who helps train the Whartons’ dogs,
gave Connor his first dog to run in trials in 2008. “‘Lena’ was slow
starting out, and everyone doubted her, but she, Marty and I
worked hard and she proved herself by qualifying for the 2010
Nationals,” Connor says.
Connor and Expressway’s Hershalena, WDX, made it
through the third series of the National English Springer
Spaniel Field Trial Association (ESSFTA) National Amateur
Championship, but ultimately Lena was eliminated after a
long, difficult retrieve. Sadly, she died less than two months
later of complications from grass awn infections.
Connor’s latest field trial springer is AFC Pinecroft’s Princess
Peyton, a puppy out of two of the Whartons’ Field Champions,
who he recently handled to an Amateur Field Champion title
and the first leg toward her Master Hunter title. A testimony
to Connor’s achievements, “Peyton” was among 21 dogs that
finished the arduous six-course weeklong ESSFTA National
Amateur Championship
last November in Beatrice,
Neb. Of the 112 entries,
Connor was the only teenager to compete.
“I was thrilled when I finished the National Amateur with
Peyton,” he says. “Not many people thought I could do it. Obviously, I would have liked to have placed, but it was exciting to
compete alongside adults in such a big event, and I was proud of
Peyton’s performance.”
Chasing a Dream
Earning more than 30 Best Junior awards in the AKC Junior
Showmanship program, Amy Beard of Springfield, Ill., is setting
her sights on becoming a professional handler. The 18-year-old is
confident her experience as a junior handler will help her achieve
her dream.
“Caring for and competing with dogs at a young age taught
me how to handle a variety of situations,” she says. “Through
Junior Showmanship I learned how to problem-solve and how
to maintain a positive attitude. Most importantly, I learned never
to give up on a dream.”
Amy represents the fifth generation of Edelweiss Kennels,
which was founded by her great-great-grandfather, Franz Fleischli.
From age 4, Amy grew up showing Edelweiss Shih-Tzu bred
by her grandmother, Ana May Fleischli, and Edelweiss Chinese
Crested dogs bred by her mother, Kathy Knoles. The challenges
of these breeds — the constant grooming of the Shih-Tzu’s long,
T O D A Y ’ S
B R E E D E R
17
double coat and the unique hairless body of the rare Chinese
Crested — provided valuable lessons.
When she turned 10, then the minimum age to participate in
Junior Showmanship, Amy rapidly shot up the rankings. For the
next eight years, she was among the Top Five Junior Handlers in
the country, becoming No. 1 in 2008 and 2009. In the conformation ring, Amy has earned multiple Group placements and
handled five dogs of different breeds to Top 20 breed rankings.
“Amy started out as a 4-year-old little girl who couldn’t lift a
dog onto a table, and now she is a better handler than I am,” says
her mother, Kathy. “Amy is a passionate and competitive young
handler with a lot of potential.”
Amy’s success as a junior handler earned her $1,500 in college
scholarships from kennel clubs. Her goal is to use her education
to help her succeed as a professional handler.
Amy also hopes to give back to the Juniors program. “I want
to help juniors get to where I am,” she says. “By observing and
talking to professionals in the sport
over the past several years, I’ve
learned everything from baiting
and socializing dogs to evaluating
and grooming them. Now, I see young people watching me,
and I know it is my turn.”
Sharing the Heart of Beagling
Eighteen-year-old Kaylynn Williams of Martinton, Ill., has
trained and handled Beagles since she was 11 and been involved
as a breeder since she was 14. Kaylynn, who currently writes for
Hounds and Hunting magazine, plans to study English this fall
at Kankakee Community College and make a career writing
about purebred dog sports. She also manages a boarding kennel,
KW Kennels, and handles dogs professionally.
Kaylynn got her start in field trials as a 10-year-old after attending a Small Pack Option (SPO) Beagle field trial with her uncle,
Rusty Salyer of West Frankfort, Ill. Beagler Bruce Janssen of
Otterbein, Ind., saw something special in the young spectator
that day and stepped up to mentor her.
“Kaylynn had never competed, but I could tell from her reactions
to the run that she was pretty knowledgeable about the breed
and understood when my dog made an incredible move,” Janssen
recalls. “I sought her out and told her I had a dog for her.”
Kaylynn went on to handle Janssen’s Stylish KW Pic to a Field
Kaylynn Williams sits on a truck bed with SPO field trial Beagles, from left, KW’s Red Rock (“Rock”), Sandy Run Cutter Cody (“Cody”) and FC Janssens Stylish KW Pic (“Pic”).
Inset photo: Kaylynn grooms Pic.
18
I S S U E
7 8
Champion title and to his 2009 United Beagle Gundog
Federation (UBGF) National Championship win. “Pic”
is one of six Field Champions Kaylynn has finished. She
also won the 2011 Illinois SPO Beagle State Championship with FC Little Creek’s Payday, who she handled
for Larry “Dobie” Powell of Chicago, and captured third
place with MH Mo-Mo’s Blue Bell, a female from the
first litter she bred.
Kaylynn credits the Junior Beagle Field Trial Handler
program of North America for motivating her to get involved in beagling and stay involved as an adult. “At
that first field trial, a woman approached me and asked
if I was a junior handler,” she says. “I’d fallen in love with
the sport that morning, so when she presented me with
an opportunity to get involved, I jumped at it. My uncle
hasn’t been able to leave me behind ever since.”
As she grew older, Kaylynn got more involved with the
Junior Beagle Field Trial Handler program and worked with
coordinator George Pirman of Leslie, Mich., to encourage
youth to participate and create opportunities for junior handlers to earn recognition and scholarships. “The Junior Beagle
Handler program gives juniors a valuable opportunity to
learn about the sport,” Kaylynn says. “I wanted to give back
to the program that has meant so much to me over the years.”
Kaylynn also hopes to give back by judging field trials
and sharing her knowledge and experience through her
writing. “As a junior handler and one of few females in the
sport, I believe I have a unique perspective to share,” she says.
“I’d love to help show people the heart of SPO Beagling.”
Valuable Life Lessons
Junior Handler Programs Cultivate Interest
unior handler programs provide youth with opportunities to improve their
handling skills, practice good sportsmanship and get hands-on experience that
touches many facets of their lives. Among the programs that help cultivate the
fancy’s youngest competitors are the American Kennel Club (AKC) Junior Showmanship program, the Junior Beagle Field Trial Handler program of North America,
and the United Kennel Club (UKC) Total Junior and Youth Education programs.
Amateur handlers ages 9 to 17 are eligible for the AKC Junior Showmanship
program. Juniors may enter dog shows sanctioned by the AKC with a dog they
or a family member owns. They are judged on the quality of their presentation
rather than the conformation of their dog. Besides dog shows, juniors may
participate in obedience, agility, rally, tracking, herding, earthdog, hunting tests,
field trials, and lure coursing. Through the Junior Showmanship Scholarship
program, the AKC annually awards scholarships to deserving junior handlers
to encourage them to continue their education. For more information, please
visit www.akc.org/kids_juniors.
Organized by professional beagle handler and past United Beagle Gundog
Federation president George Pirman, the Junior Beagle Field Trial Handler program
of North America invites handlers ages 9 to 17 to submit scores from any AKC
or Canadian Kennel Club Beagle field trial for points toward rankings, recognition and prizes. The program encourages responsible pet ownership and awards
bonus points when juniors own their dog. Purina donates a Junior Beagle
Handler hat to each participant and a jacket to the Top Five junior handlers
at the end of each season. Handlers earn T-shirts, sweatshirts and medallions
based on their participation and achievements. In addition, the Scholarship Award
program allows junior handlers to earn funding for college or a trade school. For
information, please email Pirman at [email protected].
The UKC provides classes for handlers ages 2 to 18 at conformation events
and agility, obedience and rally obedience trials. The Total Junior award program
was created to encourage juniors to participate in conformation and performance events, breed dogs and promote responsible pet ownership. The UKC’s
Youth Education Program (YEP) assists coonhound clubs in holding educational
activities for youth that culminate with a bench show and nite hunt. The
UKC also sponsors a yearlong Coonhound Youth Championship Event Series that
includes a Youth National Coonhound Championship bench show and nite hunt.
For more information, visit www.ukcdogs.com/WebSite.nsf/WebPages/Kids
J
Beyond knowledge of dogs and dog sports, junior
handlers have the opportunity to learn skills and lessons
that help them excel in other areas of their lives. “Field trials
teach youth how to communicate with adults, how to look them
in the eye, shake hands, and speak respectfully and confidently,” observes proud father Greg Wharton. “The biggest
change I’ve seen in Connor as a result of his involvement in field
trials is greater self-confidence. He was a quiet, self-conscious boy
a few years ago, but he has truly grown through this sport. That
confidence will serve him well.”
Good sportsmanship is another lesson learned by junior
handlers. “Sportsmanship is emphasized in the AKC Junior
Showmanship program by the judges, in seminars and at dog
shows,” says Carolyn. “The friendships I’ve formed motivate
me to be happy for others’ successes too.”
Andrew has been challenged to learn better time management
since becoming involved in field trials. In addition to training and
conditioning May-C every other day, Andrew is responsible for
feeding, watering and cleaning the Fidlers’ kennel of six dogs as
well as caring for the birds and horses.
“This is the ultimate responsibility for a young person,” says
his father, Brian Fidler. “The work ethic Andrew is developing
will be with him for the rest of his life.”
Though his workload can get stressful at times, Andrew is
committed to his dogs. “You have to put a lot of time and effort
into them, and you have to really know your dogs to do well in
competition,” he says. “It is all worth it.” ■
T O D A Y ’ S
B R E E D E R
19
2012 CAN SUMMIT
The Gut’sin Role
Disease
Keszthelyi was one of 15 presenters at the Nestlé
Purina Companion Animal Nutrition (CAN) Summit
in March in Lisbon, Portugal. Attended by more
than 100 veterinary experts from around the world,
the conference featured the latest discoveries related
to the GI tract in health and disease. Some of the
information presented counters long-held beliefs
about the mechanics of disease processes.
Purina Veterinary Nutritionist Dorothy Laflamme,
D.V.M., Ph.D., DACVN, who organized and served
as the chair of the conference, says, “The gastrointestinal tract serves a critical role in canine health,
providing a physical barrier against the outside
world on the inside of the body. Millions of microorganisms live in the GI tract. Collectively called the
microbiome, these microorganisms are critical for the
normal development of a healthy immune system.”
A
dog’s gastrointestinal (GI) tract is the
largest immune organ in the body.
Over 65 percent of the immune cells
in the body are found in the gut, where
they protect the body against invading organisms,
such as bacteria and viruses, while tolerating normal
proteins and beneficial bacteria.
The notion that diseases begin in the gut focuses
on the important role of the gut as the primary site of
exposure to antigens, its barrier function in excluding invasive bacteria and its role in promoting
healthy immune function. Alterations in barrier
function along with increased intestinal permeability can be caused by or can lead to diseases,
such as diabetes mellitus, says Daniel Keszthelyi,
M.D., of Maastricht University Medical Center in
The Netherlands.
20
I S S U E
7 8
The Leaky Gut
While traditionally it was thought that disease
precedes the infiltration of harmful organisms into
the body, or the penetration of macromolecules
through the intestinal barrier, the discovery that a
leaky gut may exacerbate disease presents a paradigm shift, says Keszthelyi, a fellow in human
gastroenterology-hepatology.
“This new paradigm subverts traditional theories
underlying the development of certain diseases,”
he says. “It suggests that unfavorable immune activation can be counteracted if the interplay between
genes and environmental triggers is prevented by
re-establishing intestinal barrier functions.”
In his talk, Keszthelyi demonstrated that in genetically predisposed people and rats, a leaky gut is
2012 CAN SUMMIT
a predisposing factor for of type 1 diabetes mellitus,
an autoimmune disorder common in people and
dogs. Dogs may share some common risk factors.
“Prediabetic people had the greatest increase
in intestinal permeability (IP), which suggests that
increased IP precedes the onset of clinical diabetes
rather than is caused by type 1 diabetes mellitus,”
he says. “This demonstrated that increased IP is
observed not only in patients who have developed type 1 diabetes but also in those with a preclinical condition.”
The disturbance in intestinal barrier function is
believed to play a role in the pathogenesis of several
systemic diseases. Increased intestinal permeability
— or leaky gut — may be associated with diabetes,
celiac disease, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD)
and rheumatoid disorders among others. Though
these diseases differ, they have one important thing
in common — a disturbance in immune function.
New researach suggests that this distrubance in
immune function may begin in the gut.
“When the finely tuned trafficking of macromolecules through the intestinal barrier is dysregulated, both intestinal and extraintestinal disorders
can occur, particularly in genetically susceptible
individuals,” says Keszthelyi. “Further studies are
needed to verify the therapeutic potential of enhancing intestinal barrier function. Diabetes may provide
an ideal disease model.”
The Gut-Brain Axis
Recent studies have shown a possible link between
the gut’s microbiome and psychological disorders,
such as anxiety and depression. These occur via the
gut-brain axis, a two-way communication system
between the central nervous system and the GI system. Intestinal bacteria are believed to play an important role as modulators and signaling components.
These studies in animals have generated interest
in the role of intestinal microbes as key players in
gut-brain communication, says Premysl Bercik, M.D.,
assistant professor and director of the clinical laboratory at the Farcombe Family Digestive Health
Research Institute at McMaster University in
Hamilton, Canada.
“The intestinal microflora is made up of a large and
diverse number of microbes that perform different
functions, and that have developed a symbiotic relationship with their host,” Bercik explains. “These
microbes play a crucial role in innate and adaptive
immune responses and influence physiological
systems throughout life by modulating gut motility,
intestinal barrier stability, nutrient absorption,
and distribution of somatic and visceral fat.”
Among the examples Bercik cited:
• Mice infected with Campylobacter jejuni displayed
anxiety-like behavior. The abnormal behavior
occurred very early in the infection, even before any
significant immune response occurred, indicating
that the nervous system can detect an acute change
in the gut and selectively identify a pathogen in
the gut.
• In patients with chronic bowel disorders, including inflammatory bowel diseases, anxiety and
depression are common. In mouse models, lowgrade inflammation induces anxiety/depressionlike behavior that is normalized when mice are
treated with a specific probiotic, despite no improvement in gut inflammation or in levels of circulating cytokines, the protein messengers between
cells that regulate inflammatory responses.
• Altering mouse gut microbiota by antimicrobials
can alter mouse behavior, transforming a shy mouse
into a daring one with high exploratory drive.
When germ-free mice (those born and raised without specific bacteria or viruses) are colonized
with specific bacteria, it determines their behavioral phenotype and brain chemistry.
Though much remains to be learned about the
microbiome, it is clear that the microbes in the GI
tract have a greater influence on health and wellbeing than previously thought. Through emerging
research, scientists are learning how to manage these
diseases and how dietary changes may lead to positive changes in the microflora. ■
Editor’s Note: The 2012 CAN Summit was the third
annual scientific meeting in which experts from around
the world gathered to explore an important topic in veterinary medicine. The previous conferences focused on
gerontology and obesity in 2010 and 2011, respectively.
T O D A Y ’ S
B R E E D E R
21
BREEDER PROFILE
The Fire
—
OF
A L P I N E FA L L S —
As BIS/BISS GCH Alpine’s Highwayman stands in the backyard of Ed and Karen
Thomason’s house, his burning gaze catches reflections of the sky that sprawls across
a thinly populated slice of the Pacific Northwest. “Jelly,” the No. 1 American Staffordshire
Terrier since 2010, is the No. 1 dog in the Thomasons’ Alpine Falls AmStaffs kennel
in Rochester, Wash. His mix of focus and playfulness mirrors that of his owners.
L
Karen Thomason stands with CH
Silver Ice’s Super Cooper, an Alaskan
Malamute; C.J. Fisher, center, holds
GCH Snow Winds Masked Bandit,
the No. 3 Parson Russell Terrier;
and Ed Thomason kneels with GCH
Kingslynne-Kimo NW, the No. 1
Bulmastiff. Ed professionally
handles all three dogs.
22
I S S U E
7 8
aughs between Ed and Karen come spontaneously, often and with volume. Ed, a professional handler, has a game face for game
time. Karen, a non-practicing licensed
veterinary technician, enjoys
breeding more than showing.
“My whole life has been
wrapped around competition,”
Ed says, “whether it’s been
basketball, football or fighting kumite.”
Kumite?
That word usually causes
fans of action movies to think of
actor Jean-Claude Van Damme
and the 1988 based-on-a-truestory film, “Bloodsport,” about
an international no-holds-barred
underground martial arts competition held in Hong Kong.
Ed knows people make that
comparison, laughs about it
and can recite scenes and quotes from the movie.
Ed, however, as a teenager lived in Manteca,
Calif., and competed in sanctioned kumite events.
“At 18 years old, I was a semi-professional mixed
martial arts fighter and had been involved in tae
kwon do for eight years,” he explains. “When I was
14 years old, I won the California state championship
for the 14- to 17-year-old kumite division over a 17-yearold in the final bout.”
So, rather than “Bloodsport,” a more appropriate
movie to think of might be
“The Karate Kid.” The 1984
story ends with a young
teenage boy, likewise in California, competing in the
championship ring of a martial arts competition to overcome the odds and win.
BIS/BISS GCH Alpine’s Catch
Now a professional handler, Me If You Can, an American
Ed stands in conformation Staffordshire Terrier bred and
rings around the country owned by the Thomasons, is
an up-and-coming dog in the
and expects nothing less U.S. who previously earned
Champion titles in Luxemfrom himself.
bourg, Romania and Hungary.
“I’m competitive,” he says.
“I don’t go to dog shows to lose. I am honest about
that, but isn’t that how everyone feels?”
Taking the Lead
Karen grew up in Bonney Lake, Wash., 60 miles
northeast of where the Thomasons live. Her uncle
had Staffies as pets. Karen bought her first one in
BREEDER PROFILE
BIS/BISS GCH Alpine’s Highwayman
(“Jelly”), the No. 1 AmStaff, has earned
21 Bests in Show handled by Ed.
T O D A Y ’ S
B R E E D E R
23
BREEDER PROFILE
1997 while attending Pierce Community College in
Tacoma, Wash., to become a veterinary technician.
“I liked the breed’s size, the minimal coat care
required and that an AmStaff can go hiking but
also wants to lie on the couch with me,” she says.
Karen bought her first show dog, Timberland’s
Atomic Force, as a puppy in 1998. She finished the
blue brindle-and-white dog’s championship quickly,
winning four majors. “I didn’t really know what
I was doing,” she says. “‘Truman’ was so impressive
I didn’t even get to learn how to show a dog.”
She bought CH Timberland’s Pixie Stick, RA,
TT, CGC, in 2000 and had a learning experience.
“‘Pixie’ ended up preferring to do anything other
than show, though I did finish her,” says Karen. “She
would rather go hiking, fetch a ball or lie next to me.”
In hindsight, Karen says that may have had more
to do with her inexperience with show dogs than
with Pixie’s lack of interest.
“She showed me a lot more than Truman did about
how to present a dog and how to teach motivation to
a dog,” Karen says. “I had to learn how to stack a dog
and how to gait. I was so new to the sport, I didn’t
know how to train a puppy, how to get Pixie to free
Ed and Karen sit in front of their
house in Rochester, Wash., with
Jelly, left, and “Vixen” (CH Alpine’s
Jamaica Me Crazy).
24
I S S U E
7 8
stack, perk her ears or anything I needed her to do
in the ring. So, I had a hard time motivating her to
do those things.”
Karen went to one dog show a month to work
toward finishing her dogs’ titles. She managed a dog
day care and boarding facility in Seattle for four years
during that time and started breeding AmStaffs.
“Working at the day care was wonderful for me
when socializing my puppies,” she says. “I took
them to work with me.”
Karen finished six champions through 2003.
Motivated to Achieve
Ed started with dogs in Northern California
around the time Karen had in Washington. He used
the Mustang Kennels name from 1998 to 2004. He
honed his handling craft in the United Kennel Club
(UKC), where he found his first opportunities.
“I’m a big motivation guy. I am driven by moments,
events in my life. That led me to the UKC,” he says.
“At first, when I was 18 years old, I went to an AKC
(American Kennel Club) dog show to watch the
AmStaffs. I approached some breeders there and felt
like they brushed me off. That lit a fire. I used that
BREEDER PROFILE
experience as motivation to get involved, to find
others who would talk with me about the breed.
So, soon after, I went to another show; it happened
to be a UKC show. There, I met Ron Ramos, who was
from Fresno (Calif.) and had American Pit Bull
Terriers, which is how the UKC registered AmStaffs
at that time. I ended up buying two from him later.”
Ed won more than 50 UKC Bests in Show the next
three to four years, including with CH Hilltop’s King
Cobra, CD, ROH, CGC, TT, a Staffie he bought from
Chris Lee of Hilltop Kennels in Richmond, Va.
“Cobra” was registered in the UKC and the AKC.
Ed finished Cobra and started handling other breeds,
including American Eskimos and Boxers, for other
owners. By UKC rules, Ed could not be a professional
handler, but the volume of experience he gained in
several years in those shows was beneficial.
Ed attended a handling class given by AKC
professional handler Laurie Jordan-Fenner in 2002
in Sacramento, Calif., and has worked as a professional AKC handler since. “She put me through
handling boot camp,” he says. “I give her credit
for teaching me everything I needed to know to
compete in AKC shows.”
Ed attended his first AKC show in the San Francisco Bay Area in April 2003 and finished Cobra’s
championship the next month at the Great Western
Terrier Dog Show in Southern California.
“Because of my background in sports, competing
with dogs was natural for me,” says Ed. “You go into
the ring with a dog you believe in, and, hopefully,
you will win with that dog you’ve bred, trained,
conditioned and shown. That’s the goal.”
When Karen and Ed met in 2004, true to their
all-or-nothing form, they began a full-hearted but
long-distance relationship.
A Team Effort
The Thomasons started Alpine Falls with a candid
evaluation of what improvements needed to be made
in breeding Alpine Falls AmStaffs. They decided to
focus on shoulders and movement.
“No dog is perfect,” Karen says. “We breed to
minimize faults and get as close to the standard
as possible.”
To set goals as breeders, they considered who
in the fancy they admire and what those breeders
have achieved. One person particularly stood out.
“Pat Trotter is somebody we look up to,” says
Karen. “She has been a successful breeder, one of
the best ever, in my opinion. We look at people like
Pat and aim to achieve at least as high goals as they
have. We feel like we’ve only cracked the ice of
what we’re capable of doing.”
The Thomasons have done well since their first
Alpine Falls litter, whelped by Pixie in 2005. It included CH Alpine’s Jamaica Me Crazy. “Vixen” was
the 2009 and 2010 Top Producing Dam in the breed
and has produced 10 AKC Champions, including
BIS/BISS GCH Alpine’s Ring of Fire. “Phoenix”
won the 2010 Junior World and Junior Euro dog
shows and was the top terrier in Hungary in 2010, the
same year he won the National Specialty in Spain.
Phoenix has won four Bests in Show and more than
50 Group Firsts since returning to the U.S., where
he is shown by a friend of the Thomasons, professional handler Brian Livingston of Aubrey, Texas.
Breeding AmStaffs not only is at the center of
Ed and Karen’s teamwork, it’s what brought them
together. A thorough researcher of breeding lines,
Karen looked into Cobra’s line after seeing Ed handle
him at the Northern California Terrier Association
Dog Show in 2003 in Sacramento, Calif. She later
learned that Cobra shared a common line with a dog
Ed cleans the Alpines Falls kennel,
after Karen and C.J. have taken
the dogs into the dog room in
the Thomasons’ house.
T O D A Y ’ S
B R E E D E R
25
BREEDER PROFILE
America’s Terrier
he American Staffordshire Terrier is a
muscular, agile dog of great strength. A
cross between a Bulldog and a terrier, the
breed was developed in England and brought
to the U.S. in the late 19th century. The
American Kennel Club registered the Staffordshire Terrier in 1936 but revised the name to
American Staffordshire Terrier in 1972 to reflect
the heavier breed type developed by Americans.
“This breed historically played an important role as guardians of children and the BIS/BISS GCH Alpine’s Highwayman (“Jelly”)
homestead on American farms,” says Alpine
Falls AmStaff breeder Karen Thomason. “They are great family pets that are incredibly
versatile. They also are loyal and have great personalities. AmStaff owners often
call them the ‘clown of the household.’”
T
she co-owned and was looking to breed. She called
Ed to talk about breeding the bitch to Cobra.
“We talked off and on and became friends,” Karen
says. “After the puppies were born, we sent pictures
of them back and forth. It wasn’t until January 2004
that we spent any time together at a dog show.”
“The dogs brought us together,” Ed says. “I moved
up to Washington in the fall of 2004. It was intense.
We knew early on this was where we were going with
the relationship, and one of us needed to move.”
Karen laughs. “I told him I wasn’t interested in
wasting my time if he wasn’t going to be serious,”
she says. “I also told him I wouldn’t move to California, that I wouldn’t leave my family.”
“You’re crazy,” Ed says, with a smile and a
playfully mocking tone. “Who doesn’t want to
live in California?”
“Well, I would have been willing to move, but
I really didn’t want to,” says Karen.
They bought their home on three acres in Rochester
early in 2005. It’s centrally located between Seattle
and Portland, where they attend many dog shows.
They built a covered outdoor kennel with 10 runs
ranging from 50 to 160 square feet, plus a 20-by-65foot run that allows extra space for two dogs. The
dogs are rotated through the extra-large run. All dogs
get 12 hours of free play in the fenced one-acre
backyard, weather permitting.
While Ed and the Thomasons’ assistant, C.J. Fisher
26
I S S U E
7 8
of Newburg, Ore., are traveling to shows, Karen tends
to the kennel and the dogs at home. Three times a
week, each dog gets additional exercise chasing
tennis balls. When all are home, C.J. helps with
kennel work and moving dogs between the kennel
and the dog room inside the house. Karen grooms
the dogs in the laundry room. Ed cleans the paverblock kennel runs and, when there is a litter of puppies, helps Karen with them. Karen starts puppies’
training, and Ed trains them for conformation.
The 17-foot-long modified cargo truck Ed and
C.J. take to shows sits in the shade, parked beside
the small circle drive. Though Ed flies to some
shows, he drives around 60,000 miles showing dogs
about 50 weekends a year. That constant activity as
a pro handler is a bonus for the Alpine Falls breeding program.
“We have a distinct advantage, because of what
I do,” says Ed. “I’m all across the country, getting to
see dogs more than other breeders do. I can evaluate them and consider dogs we potentially would
like to breed to.”
While Ed and Karen learned much of what they
know about dogs through experience and observation, they are mentors to C.J.. “I think anybody
who wants to get into the sport should know all
facets,” Ed says. “With us, C.J. is learning the show
and breeding sides.”
Fulfilling Potential
Alpine Falls had three litters in 2011, and has had
eight total. It was the first year Ed and Karen have
bred more than one litter in a year. They don’t breed
unless they are ready to have a new dog for themselves.
Karen and Ed have bred 16 Champions. Dogs
they have bred have won four National Specialties
in the U.S. and Europe and 26 all-breed Bests in
Show internationally. They conservatively estimate
they have bred winners of more than 150 Group
Firsts. The Thomasons are AKC Breeders of Merit,
as well, meaning they have been involved with
AKC events for at least five years, have bred or
co-bred four or more champions in conformation,
performance or companion events, are members of
an AKC club, and can certify that their dogs receive
health screening.
Vixen watches intently as Karen
scoops Purina Pro Plan Sensitive
Skin & Stomach Formula. Alpine Falls
dogs also are fed Purina Pro Plan
Selects Natural Turkey & Barley and
Purina Pro Plan Performance formulas.
Still, Ed says the success of Alpine Falls AmStaffs is not all due to him
and Karen. “A breeder can
breed a good dog,” Ed
says, “but the owner you
put a dog with can make
the dog great.”
Valerie Piltz of Bellevue,
Wash., owns and competes in dog sports with the dog
the Thomasons consider to be the ultimate representation of the breed’s versatility: INTLCH UNJ
CA URO3 UAG2 FO UCD UWPS UGWPC UKC
GRCH Alpine’s Vintage Power Trip, RN, CD, ROH,
CGC, TT, TDI (“Power”).
“In my mind, there is no more versatile breed,”
Ed says, “and Power is the definition of what an
AmStaff should be. Valerie deserves a lot of credit
for what Power has achieved. She has helped him
to fulfill his potential.”
Ed has helped many other dogs fulfill their conformation potentials. He has handled the No. 1
American Staffordshire Terrier for five years. Besides
Jelly, he handled CH Fraja NE Gold Ticket (“Brody”)
and CH GAFF’s I’m Here for the Party (“Sally”)
to be No. 1 in 2008 and 2009, respectively.
Three to five client dogs live full time with the
Thomasons for Ed to exhibit. He typically handles
around 15 dogs at a show. He handles the No. 1
Bullmastiff, GCH Kingslynne-Kimo NW (“Fletcher”);
the No. 3 Tibetan Spaniel, GCH Kolumbia’s Rock N
Roll Legend (“Elvis”); and the No. 3 Parson Russell
Terrier, GCH Snow Winds Masked Bandit (“Zorro”).
Ed has handled Best in Show winners in the
Working, Terrier and Toy groups, and has shown
Top 10 Terrier and Working dogs. He has handled 10
dogs of seven breeds to No. 1 rankings, including
a Clumber Spaniel, German Pinscher, Bullmastiff
and Tibetan Mastiff. Still, Jelly has a special place.
Jelly has been at the other end of the lead for 21
of Ed’s 35 AKC all-breed Bests in Show. An up-andcoming Alpine Falls AmStaff with one of those
Bests in Show is BIS/BISS GCH Alpine’s Catch Me
If You Can. A son of Phoenix, “Chase” has been
showed sparingly by Ed in the U.S. but won Best
Terrier in Show at the Northern California Terrier
BREEDER PROFILE
Association Dog Show this year. Chase also is a
Champion in Luxembourg, Romania and Hungary,
handled by Norbert Tibay of Budapest, Hungary.
“Jelly is the top-winning dog I’ve shown,” says Ed,
“and we bred him, so that makes him extra cool.”
“Jelly is very special to us,” Karen says, “for how
much he is like his grandmother, Pixie, in looks
and behavior. Even if he hadn’t ever won a dog
show, he’d be special to us.”
Jelly, though, has won many times. With his intense desire, he seemingly has taken to the fiery
blend of intense competition and exuberance of winning that drives his breeder-owner-handler, Ed.
“I just don’t believe in doing anything halfway,”
Ed says. “Karen and I have hefty goals and work to
be the best at what we do to achieve them. We have
dedicated our lives to this.” ■
Jelly chases a tennis ball tossed
by Ed, right, while C.J. and Karen
watch in the Thomasons’ oneacre fenced backyard.
T O D A Y ’ S
B R E E D E R
27
FROM THE FIELD
Getting Started
on
Multiple Marks
BY MIKE LARDY
I
t is a big step for a young dog to retrieve memory birds. The ability to remember and go after
a memory mark is something taught most
effectively in a deliberate progression. If you
attempt to run memory marks without such a progression, you may encounter significant problems,
such as no-goes, spinning, popping or other attituderelated issues that can bog down your training or
even limit your dog’s potential.
The progression toward running multiple marks
begins when you start simple single marks. Fundamental retrieving “mechanics” on single marks are
the first prerequisite for running multiple marks.
Your pup should watch the mark, go get it and bring
it back. That sounds simple enough, but a lot of early
problems on multiple marks stem from problems
with marking mechanics. There are several issues
with marking mechanics that must be addressed
before you proceed with multiple mark training.
28
I S S U E
7 8
• Your pup should be somewhat steady on line.
He should watch any marks to the ground without squirming around in your arms or tugging or
twisting on a lead. It is best if your pup is “lead
steady,” or sits still on a taut lead.
• Get your dog accustomed to the “mark” cue. Tell
him “mark” before a single is thrown. This cue will
get him to focus on the thrower and will later be
used as a cue prior to sending him on memory birds.
• Your pup should run eagerly after single marks
and hunt aggressively when a single mark is
hidden in moderate cover. Your dog’s enthusiasm
for memory marks will be less than it is for single
marks, so you can’t hope he’ll be eager for memory
marks if he’s only mildly interested in singles.
• Your pup should be accustomed to getting “help”
from the gun. Over the course of his training whenever he was completely lost on a mark, he should
have learned to recover with help from the thrower.
FROM THE FIELD
Your dog is even more likely to get confused or lost on mem- gunner assistance. That is, the thrower could stand up, wave
his arms or even yell “hey-hey.” The idea is that the dog will look
ory marks, so it is important to be able to take help.
• Your pup should return to you directly and deliver to hand. If out and remember the mark or will simply be intrigued enough
your pup drops the bird away from you or if you are getting to run out when you send him. Here’s where the art of dog
into delivery hassles, that is not the time to teach memory training comes in. You can often read your dog and determine
marks. This last prerequisite means your dog ought to have whether he’s going to go before you even send him. If you read
completed force fetch in the yard before being taught doubles any reluctance, you might have the gun offer some assistance,
such as simply standing, before you attempt to send.
in the field.
More likely, your dog will look ready to go and will rocket out
If your dog’s retrieving mechanics meet the above criteria, then
after the memory bird. That’s great, but it’s just the beginyou ought to proceed toward multiple mark training.
ning. Now, over a period of several days, you will
However, before actually starting to teach doubles,
run a series of taught doubles in various places
there are a few steps in the marking progression.
As with all aspects
keeping the setup fairly simple and always being
• Get your dog accustomed to running singles
prepared to offer gunner assistance. You should
off multiple guns. The guns don’t have to
of dog training, the key
continue to run singles off multiple guns as
be close together, but your dog should not
is to read your dog,
well, so your dog doesn’t start head swinging
be distracted by multiple stations in the
knowing when to
in anticipation of seeing the next bird thrown.
field watching birds, going after the mark
As soon as your dog has successfully comor returning.
simplify and when
pleted several taught doubles, you can proceed
• Get your dog accustomed to being sent on
to challenge.
to running cold doubles, or running a double
marks on his name after you put your hand
without first running the memory bird as a single.
down over and in front of his head. This creates
It is important to have the gun ready to offer assistance.
a chain of events leading to his release, a chain that
will help to trigger his going on future memory marks. This You don’t want to have your dog fail. A dog that starts no-going
same chain will help you when you start lining your dog to can develop a mental block about going on memory marks. To
help ensure success, you should not increase the complexity of
a pile of bumpers in yard work.
• Get your dog accustomed to focusing on the next mark to be these early doubles. Just keep the guns widely spread, clearly
thrown when delivering a mark with multiple guns in the visible and a relatively short length.
Once your dog successfully runs cold doubles, you should
field. Ultimately, your dog should be comfortable watching
the next mark being thrown while still holding the bird from virtually never go back to running any memory mark first as a
the previous retrieve. This creates the mechanics of a memory single. Now, all marks will have a unique address, so your dog
mark. The dog comes in with the prior mark and focuses on won’t fall into the pitfalls that can develop from repeating
the next mark to be retrieved before delivery. This also results marks. One exception is that I might go back to taught doubles
in a sort of minimemory mark because there is a delay before for the first few doubles on water.
The progression I’ve laid out for learning multiple marks is
you send for the single created by taking delivery.
Now, you’re set to begin teaching doubles. Initially, your quite simple. It is often tempting to try a multiple your dog is
double setups should have the guns nearly 90 degrees apart to unprepared for, especially in a competitive training atmosphere,
avoid confusion. You also want to keep the setup as simple as but your long-term success will be greater if you keep to the
possible, so avoid using a field with heavy cover or aggressive simple progression. As with all aspects of dog training, the key
terrain and generally throw the marks downwind. Above all, is to read your dog, knowing when to simplify and when to
you should teach doubles on land. The water presents too many challenge. Before you know it, your dog will perform memory
marks with ease. ■
complications for your initial taught doubles.
I teach a double by running the memory bird as a single first,
and then make it a double by throwing the memory bird and Professional retriever trainer and handler Mike Lardy has trained over
then the “go-bird.” When your dog returns with the go-bird, 70 Field Champions and won the National Retriever Championship
have him deliver at your side, facing the memory gun. Cue a record seven times. A member of the Retriever Hall of Fame, Lardy
with “mark” just before you take the bird from him, and then conducts training workshops, has produced three training videos/DVDs,
send with your hand down.
and is the author of a three-volume collection of training articles. For
If your dog “no-goes,” then you want to immediately offer information, visit www.totalretriever.com or call 800-848-5963.
T O D A Y ’ S
B R E E D E R
29
PURINA FARMS
Around
the
World
AND BACK
BY ANGELA HE
C
Linny Linnemeyer’s 7-week-old
puppy, Linny’s Dio, center,
blends in with the stuffed toy
Siberian Huskies.
30
I S S U E
7 8
elebrating the origins of 41 breeds of
dog at the International Cheese, Wine
& Canine Festival in June at the Purina
Event Center at Purina Farms, more than
750 people sipped wine and sampled cheese from
around the world while learning about the breeds.
Ancient breeds like the Basenji, Afghan Hound
and Saluki were featured as well as more recent
breeds like the American Staffordshire Terrier and
Alapaha Blue Blood Bulldog. Rare breeds, such as
the L’epagneul de Saint-Usuge, a spaniel from the
Bresse region of France, and the Portuguese Podengo,
a rabbit hunting hound, also were represented.
Organized by the Missouri Rhineland Kennel
Club, the inaugural event attracted area breeders,
fanciers and rescue groups, who decorated booths
and dressed in festive clothing to show their breeds’
countries of origin. People looking for a breed and
those wanting to learn about purebred dogs attended.
Flying disc routines by the Pro Plan Performance
Team and rally obedience demonstrations combined with German and Irish dancers, musicians
and belly dancers made for an enjoyable evening.
“This was a unique Meet the Breed event, where
we paired dogs by country of origin with wine from
those regions,” said Susan Watermann, president of
the Missouri Rhineland Kennel Club. “The members
of our all-breed kennel club brought a variety of
breeds. This was a wonderful opportunity to educate
the public about dogs, dog breeds, competitive canine
sports, and the many ways dogs enrich our lives.”
As participants stopped at each booth, they were
greeted by ambassadors eager to share their breed’s
history. Afghan Hound breeder Joy Atkins-Miller of
Franklin County, Mo., said, “Afghans are believed
to have descended from the Siberian Wolf and to
have come from the deserts of Afghanistan in the
19th century. In Afghan lore it is said that during the
PURINA FARMS
time of Noah’s Ark, the Tazi, an ancient desert breed,
was actually an Afghan Hound.”
Atkins-Miller, who has bred Afghan Hounds
under the Amon Rih prefix since 1974, brought adult
dogs, GCH Suhden Nicholi Nigella (“Nicholi”) and
CH Elf’s Evening Star of Entesar (“Savannah”),
and 17-month-old puppies, Amon Rih Khemosabi
(“Khemosabi”) and Amon Rih Farouka (“Lovie”).
A coursing breed that pursues its quarry by sight,
the Afghan Hound is a natural hunter and scavenger. “These dogs were renowned for their skills
in the field,” said Atkins-Miller. “They were given
as coveted gifts to Afghan nobles and royalty.”
Depicting the breed’s aloofness, Nicholi and
Savannah sat elegantly on top a velvet-covered bench,
while Khemosabi and Lovie playfully chased each
other. “Afghans are a cheerful, dignified breed,”
Atkins-Miller said, holding tightly to the puppies’
leads and adding, “with lots of energy.”
Near the Afghan Hound booth was a village of
Basenji lovers from the Show-Me and Route 66
Basenji clubs. Their decorative grass hut, synthetic
fire pit and African tribal clothing earned them
third place in the voting for Best Decorated Booth.
One of the oldest breeds, the Basenji is prized for
his intelligence and for not barking. Rather, these
dogs yodel when excited.
Basenji owner Terry Colbert of Alton, Ill., said,
“The Basenji is primarily a sighthound, though they
also hunt by scent. They are definitely prey-driven.
“The Basenji is a high-energy dog that needs
plenty of exercise and attention. They are not a good
pet for everyone,” she added.
Jon Curby of Columbia, Mo., has bred Basenjis
under the Kibushi prefix since 1971 and has visited
the Republic of Congo five times since 1987 to
bring back native breeding stock. “Most European
breeds are about 200 years old,” he said. “In comparison, the Basenji goes back at least 2,000 years.”
A few booths away, Golden Retriever enthusiasts wearing clothing with bright Scottish tartans
proudly talked about one of the most popular breeds
in the U.S. “These loyal dogs love sitting on your
lap,” said Suzanne Wakefield of High Ridge, Mo.,
as she stroked the glossy coat of AM/INT CH
Blazen’s Tx Twister, CD, RA, NAJ, AXP, MJP, OFP,
a Golden Retriever Club of America Hall of Fame
member owned by Lesley Albin. The gentle retriever
calmly laid down by Wakefield’s feet.
A member of the Golden Retriever Club of Greater
St. Louis, Wakefield handles breeder referrals and
public education. “Goldens were developed in
Scotland in the 19th century by Lord Tweedmouth,
who wanted a dog that could hunt in the field all day
and then come home at night and lie by the fire,”
she said. “These dogs remain true to that purpose.
They are hunting dogs with keen
water retrieving abilities and also are
friendly, trustworthy companions.”
In the Asian area, a Nordic breed,
the Siberian Husky, charmed all
who stopped to visit with breeder
Linny Linnemeyer of Union, Mo.
Her three 7-week-old puppies are
littermates with distinctive coat
colors, gray and white, black and
white, and mahogany red and white.
The puppies looked identical to the stuffed toy
Siberian Huskies she brought to decorate the booth.
“Siberians were originally bred to be endurance
sled dogs,” Linnemeyer said. “They love running
and are very intelligent with a sweet, determined
disposition, though at times they can be stubborn.”
The Siberians’ beautiful blue eyes and thick,
furry double coats distinguish them. “People imagine Huskies as very large dogs that weigh around
70 or 80 pounds. However, they actually are a perfect
medium-sized dog that grows to be between 35 to
60 pounds,” Linnemeyer said.
As the Husky puppies began howling, she added,
“They are also quite vocal.”
The relaxed pace of the event, combined with
the breed education, entertainment and wine and
cheese samples, made for an enriching experience. ■
Basenji lovers from the Show-Me
and Route 66 Basenji clubs are,
from left, Annette Muenter, Jan
Kahl, Joe Stewart, Terry Colbert,
Lisa Stewart, and Angela Anderson.
For more information or to schedule an event at the Purina
Event Center, please contact Kaite Flamm, Purina Event
Center Manager, at 888-688-PETS (888-688-7387), or
by email at [email protected]. Please visit
www.purinaproclub.com/eventcenter to learn more
about the Purina Event Center.
T O D A Y ’ S
B R E E D E R
31
NEWS TO USE
The Call
of Duty
P
urina has joined forces with the North
American Police Work Dog Association
(NAPWDA) as the official dog food sponsor.
The organization, made up of more than
3,700 K-9 teams from across the country, provides
accreditation, education and training for working
police dogs and handlers.
Harold “Ben” Bennett,
NAPWDA president, says,
“Partnering with Purina has
provided a platform to promote optimal nutrition for
these hardworking dogs. We
appreciate the opportunities that
Purina’s sponsorship has brought to broaden our programs and have an impact at the grass-roots level.”
Purina Director of Marketing Steve Remspecher
says, “Purina’s sponsorship of NAPWDA recognizes the unique bond between police officers and
their canine partners. These officers’ concern for
the health, conditioning, training and overall welfare
of their canine partners could have life or death consequences as they protect the neighborhoods, towns
and cities we live in.”
Among the common breeds represented in
NAPWDA are Belgian Malinois, Dutch Shepherds
and German Shepherd Dogs. Annual certification
helps to ensure thoroughly trained police canines
assist in the prevention and detection of crime.
PurinaCare Pet Health Insurance is the official pet
insurance for NAPWDA. When handlers sign up for
PurinaCare Pet Health Insurance between April 1, 2012,
and March 31, 2013, Purina donates $25 to the NAPWDA
memorial fund that benefits the families of officers
killed in the line of duty. In 2011, 177 officers working
in all areas of police work lost their lives.
32
I S S U E
7 8
NEWS TO USE
Advancing Genomics Knowledge
Nearly 200 geneticists from 22
countries attended the sixth biennial
International Conference on Advances
in Canine and Feline Genomics and
Inherited Diseases in May in Visby,
Sweden. Sponsored by Purina, the
five-day program featured genomic advances related
to cancer, immunology, neurology, behavior, evolution, and morphology.
Among the latest discoveries presented were:
•the autosomal recessive mutation for polyneuropathy, a muscle atrophy disease that leads to
paralysis, in Alaskan Malamutes
•an idiopathic epilepsy locus on a novel region of
chromosome 37 in Belgian Shepherds, although
epilepsy can be polygenic in this breed as well as
many others
•a novel mutation causing a heterozygous form of
progressive retinal atrophy in Golden Retrievers,
making this the third form of PRA in the breed
•a deletion of the last exon of FAN1 in Basenjis,
which causes a generalized proximal tubule reabsorption kidney deficiency known as Fanconi
syndrome
•novel mutations in two closely linked genes associated with protein-losing nephropathy in SoftCoated Wheaten Terriers, a fatal disease that occurs
around 6 years of age and affects from 5 to 15
percent of the breed
“Purina has sponsored the international canine
and feline genomics conference since the first one
in 2002,” says Purina Senior Research Scientist
Rondo Middleton, Ph.D., a member of the scientific
organizational committee. “This type of research
highlights the advances in genomics technology
and knowledge as it is applied to our companions.
It is a huge part of improving the health and wellness
of these animals. Research in genomics is fundamental to our work in molecular nutrition and, more
specifically, nutrigenomics, in which we apply knowledge about nutritional effects on gene expression.”
The genomics conference was followed by the
first International Workshop on Enhancement of
Genetic Health in Purebred Dogs, sponsored by
Purina and organized by the Swedish Kennel Club.
The workshop, held in Stockholm, was attended
by about 150 kennel club officials, dog breeders,
veterinary geneticists, and representatives of genetic
testing laboratories.
A President’s Award
Honoring Purina for its longtime support, Bird
Dog Foundation Executive Director David Smith
presented Purina the President’s Award during a
ceremony in February. “Purina has been with us
since day one offering funding support and sponsorship of our events,” Smith says. “Purina is to be
commended. Bob West and his team are tremendous
to work with. They are always there to help us.”
A recent contribution of $4,059 from the American Field English Setter and Pointer associations
was made possible through the Purina Parent Club
Partnership Program. This program provides funding to support health, education and rescue when
Pro Club members declare support for their parent
clubs and submit weight circles from bags of participating Purina brand dog foods.
The funding, earmarked for the Michael R. Tuxon
Education Fund, is providing two college scholarships and supporting youth
education efforts. The education fund is named for
Tuxon, a charter board member of the Foundation who
passed away.
Founded in 1991, the
Bird Dog Foundation in
Grand Junction, Tenn., is
dedicated to preserving
the past and protecting the
future for sporting dog
fanciers worldwide. The
Foundation’s 24,000-square-foot facility includes
the National Bird Dog Museum for Pointing Dogs,
Retrievers and Spaniels, the Field Trial Hall of Fame
and the Wildlife Heritage Center. In February 2012,
the Foundation opened a new 6,000-square-foot
annex featuring a variety of sporting breeds. ■
Bird Dog Foundation Executive
Director David Smith, left, presents
the President’s Award to Purina
Director of Sporting Bob West,
center, and Purina Director of
Marketing Steve Remspecher.
T O D A Y ’ S
B R E E D E R
33
BREED SNAPSHOT
Resilient
Retrievers
Mastiff
Types
Flat-Coated Retriever
Originally known as the Wavy-Coated Retriever,
the Flat-Coated Retriever is a versatile family companion and hunting retriever whose happy, active
demeanor is reflected in his hallmark tail wagging.
His ancestors include the “Retriever Proper,” a cross
breed that emerged from the Large Newfoundland,
setter, sheepdog and spaniel-like water dogs.
Recognized by the American Kennel Club in 1915,
the Flat-Coated Retriever dwindled to dangerous
levels following the two world wars. Eventually
the breed was put back on sound footing, thanks
to the efforts of Stanley O’Neill, one of the greatest
authorities on the breed. Slightly racier and more
moderate in bone than other retriever breeds, the
Flat-Coated Retriever
Curly-Coated Retrievers
34
I S S U E
7 7
BREED SNAPSHOT
breed was developed to have the speed, endurance, courage and size to hunt boar.
Spirited, friendly and dependable, the Great Dane
has a magnificent, regal appearance with a wellformed, smoothly muscled body. Great Danes may
be brindle, fawn, blue, black, harlequin or mantle.
Males are a minimum of 30 inches at the shoulders,
and females are a minimum of 28 inches.
Neapolitan Mastiff
Great Dane
Flat-Coat has a solid black or liver coat that protects him from elements and lies straight and flat.
Males are 23 to 24 ½ inches tall at the withers, and
females are 22 to 23 ½ inches.
Curly-Coated Retriever
One of the oldest retriever breeds, the Curly-Coated
Retriever is distinguished by his water-resistant
black or liver coat of small, tight curls. A strong,
robust breed developed in England to be a multipurpose hunting retriever, the Curly-Coated Retriever
descended from the 16th century English Water
Spaniel, St. John’s Newfoundland, the retrieving setter and
the Poodle.
First exhibited in England
in 1860, the Curly-Coated Retriever was introduced in the
U.S. around 1907. A charming,
gentle family companion that is also a
determined, durable hunter, this retriever
exudes graceful elegance somewhat uncommon among other retriever breeds. Males
are 25 to 27 inches tall at the withers, and females are 23 to 25 inches.
An ancient breed descending from Egypt, Persia,
Mesopotamia and Asia, the Neapolitan Mastiff was
rediscovered in Italy in the 1940s, where he was
used as a guard and defender. Characterized by his
massive size, loose skin, abundant wrinkles and folds
on his head, and voluminous dewlap, his essence
is a bestial appearance and astounding head.
Loyal to his family and wary of strangers, the
Neapolitan Mastiff is generally peaceful, calm and
steady despite his serious demeanor. This breed is
best paired with experienced dog owners without
young children. Males are 26 to 31 inches and average
150 pounds. Females are 24 to 29 inches and average
110 pounds.
Sources: The Complete Dog Book, Official Publication of the
American Kennel Club (New York: Ballentine Books,
2006) and the website of the American Kennel Club
(www.akc.org).
Great Dane
An elegant, distinguished Mastiff-type dog, the
Great Dane was developed in Germany more
than 400 years ago despite his name sounding like
he is from Denmark. The English adopted Great
Dane from the old French name, grand Danois, or
big Danish. Most of the finest Great Dane specimens came from Germany, where the
Neapolitan Mastiff
T O D A Y ’ S
B R E E D E R
35
Rocheuses Bouvier des Flandres Called ‘Casper’ Is the No. 1 Herding Dog
olid breed type, a showy attitude
and a proud, powerful gait have
helped to make Multi-BIS/MultiBISS GCH Rocheuses Me and My
Shadow of Cornus the No. 1 Herding Dog in the country. “Casper,”
a Bouvier des Flandres, was co-bred
by Doug and Michaelanne Johnson
of Colorado Springs, Colo., and
Karen Brown of Parker, Colo.
“With his short back, harsh
coat, impressive head and good
balance, Casper is a phenomenal
breed representative,” says Heather
Johnson, also of Colorado Springs,
who handles the dog and co-owns
him with her husband, Colton
Johnson, Brown, and Frank and
Corrine Dreyfus of Goolsby, Ala.
Besides being the No. 1 Herding
Dog, Casper is the second Bouvier
in history to win Best of Breed and
the Top 20 at the American Bouvier
des Flandres Club National Specialty.
The 3-year-old stood out among 226
dogs when he won the National
S
Specialty last October. His record
includes winning 15 Bests in Show
and five Bests in Specialty Show.
Casper was sired by Multi-BIS
CH Rocheuses Oh What a Night out
of CH Rocheuses It’s All About Me.
For the Johnsons, campaigning
show dogs is a family affair. Doug
and Michaelanne Johnson have
bred Bouviers under the Roucheuses
prefix for 36 years and Old English
Sheepdogs under the Bugaboo prefix for more than 30 years. The
family owns two boarding kennels,
Woodmen Kennels and Sunrise
Kennels, in Colorado Springs.
Colton and Heather Johnson
work as trainers and run a dog
day care from Sunrise Kennels.
As professional all-breed
handlers, Heather and Colton
Johnson devote two weekends
a month to dog shows, usually
taking 15 to 20 dogs. Of their
own dogs, Heather handles the
Bouviers and Colton the Old
English Sheepdogs. Doug
and Michaelanne Johnson
attend most shows to help
with the dogs and granddaughters Taylor, 5, and
Cameron, 3.
“Our teamwork has a
lot of benefits,” Heather
Johnson says. “While Colton
and I support Doug and
Michaelanne by showing
their dogs, they support
us by caring for our children while we are in the
ring doing what we love.
As a result, we are all able
to compete at a higher
Heather Johnson wins the American Bouvier des
Flandres Club National Specialty with GCH Rocheuses
level and bring out the
Me and my Shadow of Cornus. From left are show
potential in outstanding
chairman Lee Calhoun, judge Judith Goodin, Johnson
dogs like Casper.”
and Purina representative Diana Allen.
A friendly, laidback dog
games,” Heather Johnson says.
who loves to be around people,
Casper is fueled by Purina Pro
Casper “is an excellent companPlan Sensitive Skin & Stomach
ion during the commute to drop
the girls off at school and a spir- Formula.
ited spectator at their soccer
‘Dreamer’ Sets Havanese Record with Back-to-Back Bests in Show
handsome 3-year-old blackand-white Havanese, called
“Dreamer,” made history in April
when he won his fifth Best in Show.
Topping entries of more than 1,500
dogs per show, Multi-BIS/MultiBISS GCH Bellatak McDreamy
captured back-to-back Bests in
Show at the Terry-All Kennel Club
dog shows and became the topwinning Havanese of all time.
“Dreamer was at the top of his
game both days,” says professional
handler David Murray of Los Angeles.
“He charmed the judges with his
outgoing, animated temperament
and beautiful conformation.”
A
36
I S S U E
7 8
When Murray called breeder
and co-owner Kathy Patrick of
Sacramento with the news that
Dreamer broke the record, she was
ecstatic. “For Dreamer to have
accomplished this is incredible
and to do so with back-to-back
wins is absolutely amazing,” says
Patrick, who owns the Havanese
with her husband, Tom Patrick,
John Oakes and Carole Shea of
New Milford, Conn., and Jane
Samson of Aliso Viejo, Calif.
Sired by CH Bellatak Cupid’s
Arrow out of CH Amor Good Golly
Miss Molly, Dreamer inherited the
best qualities of his sire and dam.
GCH Bellatak McDreamy is the top-winning Havanese.
“Dreamer fits the standard to
a T,” says Patrick, a Havanese breeder
under the Bellatak prefix since 2002.
Dreamer has been the No. 1
Havanese in the country since
January 2010, when he began his
Specials campaign. He follows
another Bellatak Havanese Special,
CH Bellatak My Funny Valentine
(“Vallee”), the No. 1 Havanese in
2009 and winner of the 2008
and 2009 Havanese Club of
America national specialties and
two Bests in Show. The seven
Bests in Shows earned by Vallee
and Dreamer constitute another
record: The most achieved by a
single breeder.
Dreamer is fueled by Purina
Pro Plan Shredded Blend Chicken
& Rice Formula.
‘Aero,’ ‘Pogo’ and ‘Cisco’ Win Purina Outstanding Retriever Awards
hree black Labrador Retrievers
took top honors in April as the
2011 Purina Outstanding Field
Trial Retriever Award winners.
The retrievers, along with their
owners and handlers, were recognized at the 28th annual awards
banquet in Sedalia, Mo.
FC-AFC Landover’s Right On
Target (“Aero”), a 9-year-old male
Labrador Retriever owned by David
and Virginia Furin of Hibbing, Minn.,
and Paul Panichi of Chisholm, Minn.,
and handled by David Furin and
Dave Rorem of International Falls,
Minn., was the Purina Open All-Age
Retriever winner after earning
30 points during the yearlong
competition.
Aero, who overcame shoulder
injuries as a puppy and Derby dog,
suffered a torn cruciate in the fall
of 2010 but recovered fully and
put together his best year ever with
five wins in 23 starts to earn the
Purina Open All-Age Award.
“Aero is just a wonderful dog
for an amateur to own,” says David
Furin. “He has a calm, focused
disposition when he’s going to the
line, and his work ethic is fantastic. He’s the same dog every day.”
David Furin, who handled Aero
to two of the Open wins, also credits
Dave, Paulette and Ty Rorem of
Rorem Retrievers for their work
with Aero.
T
David and Virginia Furin hold the silk banner honoring their Labrador Retriever, “Aero,” as
the Purina Open All-Age Retriever.
The 2011 Purina Outstanding
Amateur All-Age Award went to
FC-AFC Trumarc’s L’il Ms Pogo,
a 10-year-old female Labrador
Retriever owned by Martha and
John Russell of Gainesville, Texas,
and handled by Martha Russell.
“Pogo” had a tremendous year,
earning 30 ½ points
with three wins and
eight placements in
18 starts.
Pogo has qualified for
seven National Amateurs
and is a four-time Finalist. She also is a doubleheader winner and has
127 All-Age Points.
“Pogo is a dog that likes
to please,” Martha Russell
says. “What she’s accomplished sometimes seems
impossible. We saw that
when Pogo did water marks
at 5 months old. We knew
John Russell, right, and his wife, Martha, receive the
then she was special and
Purina Outstanding Amateur All-Age Award for their
had the potential.”
Labrador Retriever, “Pogo.” Purina Director of SportMartha Russell also
ing Bob West is center.
held at Wood Dale Farms, the home
of Bob and Barbara Hayden of
Sedalia, Mo., in conjunction with
the Kansas City Retriever Club’s
licensed field trial. The winners
received engraved Purina Award
plaques, oil paintings of their dogs
by Ross Young of Springfield, Mo.,
satin award banners, and a year’s
supply of Purina Pro Plan Performance Formula for one dog. Rorem
received a ring and $5,000 as
Aero’s professional handler, and
Pogo’s owners each received a
diamond ring.
The Purina Award ceremony was
preceded by a one-day seminar,
“Trialing Versus Training,” presented by Bill and Becky Eckett
of Blackwater Retrievers. Fifty
handlers attended the second
annual workshop, which was
open to all attendees.
The Purina Award program
is administered and scored by
a committee of experienced
retriever enthusiasts: Eugene
Anderson of Denver; Dennis
Bath of Belleville, Ill.; Dr. Thomas
Strickland of Albany, Ga.; Tom
Sorenson of Wentzville, Mo.;
and professional retriever trainers
Mike Lardy, Danny Farmer, Bill
Eckett, Dave Rorem and Jerry
Patopea. Tina Ebner of Retriever
Field Trial News tabulated point
standings and assisted with
program administration.
credits professional retriever
trainers Judy Aycock and Danny
Farmer for helping Pogo get off
to a great start.
The 2011 Purina Outstanding
Derby Dog is Keeno’s Cisco, who
earned 64 points with eight wins
and 10 placements in 30 starts.
The 2 ½-year-old male Labrador
Retriever, owned by Mark
and Suzanne Medford of
Memphis, Tenn., and handled
by Mark Medford, was sired
by NAFC-FC Cody Cut A Lean
Grade out of Keeno’s Callie.
“Cisco” ran against his
littermate, Keeno’s Leather
and Lace (“Lacey”), throughout the Derby competition,
and the pair accumulated
110 points. Mark Medford
credits Cisco’s tremendous
focus and desire and the
work of professional handler
Chris Ledford and Wild Wind Owner Mark Medford, left, and professional
handler Chris Ledford pose with “Cisco,” the
Kennels for the retriever’s
Purina Outstanding Derby Dog. Medford credits
success.
Ledford for helping to develop the retriever’s
The awards banquet was focus and desire.
T O D A Y ’ S
B R E E D E R
37
Jessup Wins Fourth Straight Purina Award for the Outstanding Coonhound
4-year-old male English Coonhound, CH GR NITE CH ‘PR’
Hailes Red River, was honored as
the 2011 Purina Outstanding Nite
Hunt Coonhound. Co-owners Jody
Jessup of Rural Hall, N.C., and Penny
Jessup of London, Ky., received the
31st annual Nite Hunt Award presented to “Red,” who outperformed
4,204 hounds. It was Jody Jessup’s
fourth consecutive year to handle
the Purina Award winner.
During the yearlong competition,
Red earned 600 points in 15 of 23
events, which included winning the
Missouri and Minnesota state
championships. Jessup handled
Red to 10th place at the World
Hunt and made the Grand 16, a
new designation for the Top 16
finishers, at Autumn Oaks.
“Red is very intelligent and a
steady tree dog,” Penny Jessup
says. “He has a distinguishing,
consistent bark.”
A
“He is a different dog in a Nite
Hunt than when we pleasure hunt,”
Jody Jessup adds. “When it’s time
to compete, he knows and competes hard.”
Bred by Shane Ireland of
Pleasant Hope, Mo., Red was
sired by GR CH GR NITE CH ‘PR’
Herd’s Barber Creek Ace out of
‘PR’ L&L Briar Creek Little Sweety.
“Ace” was the World Champion
English Coonhound at the 2004
World Hunt.
Jessup handled a Black & Tan
Jody and Penny Jessup, center, receive the Purina Outstanding Nite Hunt Coonhound
Award for their English Coonhound, “Red.” Members of the Purina Coonhound Award
Committee and Purina representatives also are pictured.
Coonhound, GR NITE CH Chenoweth’s Rebel, to win the 2010
Purina Award. He won in 2009
with a Treeing Walker, GR NITE
CH ‘PR’ Tough Times Bodie, and
in 2008 with a Black & Tan, NITE
CH ‘PR’ Chenoweth’s Sue. All
were owned by Clair Chenoweth
of Bridgeport, W.Va.
“This fourth award is the most
special to me,” says Jody Jessup,
“because Red is our dog.”
As owners of the Purina Outstanding Coonhound, the Jessups
received an original oil painting
of Red by Ross Young of Springfield, Mo., an engraved Purina
Award plaque, a satin banner and a
year's supply of Purina brand dog
food. They also received a cash
award with additional monies
since they are active members of
Purina Pro Club.
Red is fed Purina Pro Plan
Performance Formula.
‘Swirl’ Wins Eighth Annual Purina Outstanding Bench Show Coonhound Award
n American Leopard Hound
known for her intelligence
and willingness to please, GR CH
C and M’s Southern Swirl, a 2year-old red merle, is the eighth
annual Purina Outstanding Bench
Show Coonhound Award winner.
A
Co-owners Mike Seets of Stonefort,
Ill., and Curtis Elburn of Peru, Ind.,
received the honor for “Swirl,” who
outperformed 1,784 hounds to win
the award.
“I compete with all coonhound
breeds, choosing whatever dog has
Posing with “Swirl,” the Purina Outstanding Bench Show Coonhound, are, from left, kneeling,
Andi Elburn, Mike Seets and Chris Elburn, and members of the Purina Coonhound Award
Committee and Purina representatives.
38
I S S U E
7 8
what it takes to win, and Swirl
stood out from the beginning,” says
Seets, who handled Swirl at 22
of the 23 events entered in 2011.
Seets has competed in bench
shows and nite hunts since 1978.
He and Elburn met soon afterward,
showing and competing against
each other. Bred by Elburn, Swirl
was sired by CH GR CH Slipknot
out of Poison Ivy. “Slipknot” was
the first National Grand Champion
American Leopard Hound and twice
won the breed at the World Hunt.
Recognized initially by the
United Kennel Club (UKC) as the
Leopard Cur in 1998, the breed’s
name was changed in 2008 when
the American Leopard Hound was
classified as the seventh breed of
coonhound.
Among her wins in the yearlong
Purina competition that contributed
to her earning 140 points, Swirl won
Grand National Champion American
Leopard Hound at Autumn Oaks
and Best of Breed at the UKC World
Hunt. She won Best of Opposite
Sex at the Georgia and Michigan
state championships.
“Swirl stands out to judges with
that red merle,” Elburn says. “She
has nice ‘cat feet’ that stay tight
on the bench. We saw she had
potential.”
This Purina Award is Elburn’s
first. Seets won the Purina Bench
Show Award in 2008 as the ownerhandler of a Black & Tan Coonhound,
GR NITE CH WSHOWCH GR CH
‘PR’ Shawnee Hills Beaujolais.
As co-owners of the Purina
Outstanding Coonhound, Seets
and Elburn received an original
oil painting of Swirl by Ross Young
of Springfield, Mo. They also were
presented engraved Purina Award
plaques, a satin banner, a year’s
supply of Purina brand dog food,
and a cash award with additional
monies since they are active
members of Purina Pro Club.
Swirl is fed Purina Pro Plan
Performance Formula.
GCH Nexus Total Eclipse Wins Clumber Spaniel National Specialty
hen Multi-BISS GCH Nexus
Total Eclipse captured Best
of Breed from more than 100 dogs
at the Clumber Spaniel Club of
America (CSCA) National Specialty
in March in Kerrville, Texas, breeder
and co-owner Jim Fankhauser of
Schoolcraft Mich., was thrilled
but not surprised considering the
2-year-old’s precocious start.
“’Eli’ has excelled from the beginning,” says Fankhauser, who owns
the dog with Chip and Shelley Miller
of Quincy, Ill. “He won two Best
Puppy in Show awards, three Sporting Groups Firsts and a Group Three
at his first four shows with Shelley.”
At the 2011 CSCA National
Specialty, Eli won Best Puppy and
then repeated the honor plus cap-
W
tured Winners Dog and Best of
Winners, for a 5-point major the
next day at the CSCA Regional
Specialty handled by professional
handler Kassie Hamaker of Marshall,
Mich. At his next show four months
later, Eli won Winners Dog and
finished his conformation championship title at the Jaxon Kennel
Club Dog Show in Marshall, Mich.
Later that day, he officially started
his Specials career, winning Best
of Breed at the Clumber Spaniel
Fanciers Club of Michigan Specialty.
Eli, a fourth-generation Nexus
Clumber Spaniel, was sired by
CH Wild Cherries King of Hearts
out of CH Nexus Jazzin Jenga. The
breeder of more than 50 champions
under the Nexus prefix, Fankhauser
considers Eli one of the best Clumbers he has produced in 15 years.
“In addition to stunning conformation and excellent movement,
Eli has a lot of spark, drive and
ambition,” Fankhauser says. “He
always is outgoing and commands
attention wherever he goes.”
Hamaker, who has handled more
than 40 of Fankhauser’s dogs,
agrees that Eli is exceptional. “He
is so exuberant,” she says. "He has
the whole package. That has helped
him stand out at this young age.
He is a wonderful example of the
breed with his beautiful face, nice
length of back and flawless movement. He has incredible potential.”
Eli is fueled by Purina Pro Plan
Sensitive Skin & Stomach Formula.
Professional handler Kassie Hamaker stacks
“Eli,” the Clumber Spaniel Club of America
National Specialty winner. Judge Ralph
Dunne is left.
FC Elder’s Rebel Run Major Is Purina Outstanding SPO Beagle
ood line control, a super nose
and keen intelligence helped
FC Elder’s Rebel Run Major, a 7 ½year-old 15-inch male tricolor
Beagle, win the 13th annual
Purina Outstanding SPO (Small
Pack Option) Field Trial Beagle
Award out of 4,600 hounds competing for the honor.
“‘Major’ proved he has the
confidence to keep on going after
others stop working the line,” says
owner-handler John Elder Jr. of
Tarentum, Pa.
During the yearlong competition, Major won 10 field trials and
placed in 19 of the 20 Purina Point
field trials he entered, accumulating 72 points. Elder describes his
hound as both “good looking and
hard running,” noting that Major
made the Grand Final at six field
trials, a competition for dogs that
excel in the field and in benched
show competitions where they
are judged for conformation.
Elder picked Major from a litter
of five males when the Beagle was
only 9 weeks old. The litter was bred
by Joe Ow of Barnyard Kennels
and Greg Rittner of Blue Hollow,
both of Westdeer, Pa. “My sister,
G
John Elder Jr. and his wife, Colleen, are shown with the oil painting and plaque won by
“Major,” the Purina Outstanding SPO Field Trial Beagle.
Dana, had a male named ‘Rascal’
who sired a litter out of a female
named ‘Crickett,’” he says. “She
allowed me to choose the pick of
the litter.
“When Major was only 3 months
old, he went into the brush tracking a rabbit and wouldn’t come out,”
Elder says. “His persistence on a
check is one of his top qualities.”
The Purina Award competition,
made up of 56 American Kennel
Club (AKC) SPO field trials that
are qualifiers for the AKC National
Championship, was neck to neck
until the end. Major was lagging
seven points behind the 15-inch
female class winner when he won
five consecutive trials at the Central,
Conemaugh, York & Adams, Jacobus, and Indiana Beagle clubs in
Pennsylvania.
Elder credits his father, John
Elder Sr., for his love of Beagles.
“My dad always had Beagles, and
we frequently hunted with them,”
he says. “Years later, my good friend
Jim Conley persuaded me to go to
a field trial at one of the oldest
beagle clubs in the country, Central
Beagle Club in Westdeer, Pa.”
Purina Area Manager Rod Carter
emceed the Purina Award Banquet
held in April preceding the 2012
AKC National Championship.
“Purina is pleased to honor these
outstanding hounds,” he said. “We
recognize the tremendous amount
of time it takes to compete at
this level. This Purina Award was
created to honor the country’s
most outstanding SPO Beagles,
owners and handlers.”
As the owner of the Purina SPO
Award winner, Elder received a
one-year supply of Purina brand
dog food for one dog, an original oil
painting of Major by Valerie Dolan
of North Java, N.Y., an engraved
Purina Award plaque, and a satin
award banner. He also received a
$1,500 prize, which was doubled
because he is an active member
of Purina Pro Club.
Attending the award ceremony
were Purina SPO Beagle Award
Committee member Tony Choate
and advisers to the committee, Mel
Stewart of the AKC, Art Silke, former
publisher of Hounds and Hunting,
and Bill Emerson, president of the
AKC National Championship.
T O D A Y ’ S
B R E E D E R
39
GET CONNECTED
TO PRO PLAN ON
FACEBOOK
Today’s Breeder
Checkerboard Square
St. Louis, MO 63164
he Purina Pro Plan for Professionals Facebook page allows
breeders and enthusiasts to connect using the popular social
networking site. Fans can post
photos, videos and experiences
and share insights about breeding,
handling and other topics.
Go to www.facebook.com/
Purina ProPlanforProfessionals to
become part of the conversation and
share your passion for the sport with
a community of dog enthusiasts.
T
GCH Maverston Double Dutch Sets Best in Specialty Show Record for Cairns
T
ammy Erickson wanted a companion Cairn Terrier but got
much more when she set her heart
on a charismatic male Cairn called
“Bat.” The winner of four Bests in
Show and 19 Bests in Specialty
Show — a record for the breed —
Multi-BIS/Multi-BISS GCH
Maverston Double Dutch stands
out with his winning attitude
“I’ve been extraordinarily lucky
to achieve this level of success,”
says Erickson of Carlisle, Md.
“Before Bat, I knew little about the
dog show world. Bat is a phenomenal dog with great conformation
and a sparkling personality that
shines at shows.”
Erickson bought Bat in 2007 as
a 10-week-old puppy from breeder
and co-owner Marly Lucier, also
of Carlisle, and became hooked on
dog shows as she watched Lucier
handle Bat to his conformation
championship title. Teaming up
with professional handler Geoff
Dawson of Lincoln, R.I., in 2009,
Erickson began campaigning Bat
as a Special.
40
I S S U E
7 8
Tammy Erikson poses with “Bat,” her Cairn Terrier who has won 19 Bests in Specialty
Shows, a record for the breed.
The No. 1 Cairn in 2010 and
2011, Bat won the Greater Twin
Cities Su-Mac Cairn Terrier Club
and Central Florida Cairn Terrier
Club specialty shows in January,
setting the Best in Specialty
Show breed record. The previous
record of four specialty show
wins was held by Bat’s greatgrandsire, CH Caledonian Berry
of Wolfpit. In other honors, Bat
captured Best of Breed at the
Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show
for the second time in February
and won the breed at the World
Dog Show in Paris in 2011.
Bat was sired by AM/CAN CH
Paragon’s Well Chosen out of CH
Maverston Dutch Treat. Erickson
also owns a female sired by Bat’s
sire, CH Paragon’s Lasting Impression, who recently made her show
debut with Dawson. Erickson
recently imported a female Cairn
from the Zalazar kennel in Denmark
that she plans to breed to Bat.
A Scottish Terrier breeder,
owner and handler since 1972,
Dawson has been showing Cairns
for 10 years and counts Bat as his
first Special. “Bat’s breed type is
exceptional, and he has the stamina
to consistently project a winning
attitude. He is the ultimate Cairn,”
he says.
Bat is fed Purina Pro Plan Selects
Salmon & Brown Rice Formula.